The Northgate Tournament
by AnarchyGunRage
Summary: BEING RE-WRITTEN AS OF OCT 25TH. After graduating from High School, Yugi and the gang participate in a tournament in Vegas. Little do they know, theres a lot more to this tournament then just dueling. In fact, the entire fate of the world may hang in the balance. Several canonXoc pairings
1. OC Introduction

**Note from the author:  
>Thank you for choosing my fanfic. I have some warnings for you.<br>This story is rated for language, sexual themes (VERY mild) and many references to songs, celebs and movies. It also contains canonXoc pairings...so if you hate that DON'T READ THIS STORY!  
>OH and for the record...I live in Canada...Therefore, I grew up watching the English anime dub...So I will be using the English names and not the original anime names. Hopefully that's okay with everyone.<br>I don't own YuGiOh...Only a few characters.  
>Co-written by my friends Heather (Kaylie07) and Leslie (Dark_Soul1313)<strong>

**Also...This story, even I'll admit...Is gonna be off to a VERY slow start...Just ride it out I guess. This first chapter is simply an OC introduction. **

**Enjoy the story. No flames please!**

...

Chapter 1  
>Introduction<p>

With her flowing dress hitting the wind gracefully, Falicity knocked on the front door of the huge house with the mailbox marked _Hardy _and Mr. Hardy answered. He was a large set man with blonde hair and blue eyes. He was wearing a suit.  
>"Hey, Mister Hardy." She said sweetly twisting the bit of ebony hair that swung free of her braid. "You got another board meeting?"<p>

"Yes, Falicity. I do." He said, letting her in.

As the 17 year old girl skipped into the house, Mr. Hardy said goodbye and departed.  
>Falicity knew from the lack of classic rock coming from her best friend's room, Vera was still asleep.<br>"I think I'll take it upon myself to wake Vera up." She said.  
>Her sneakers clopped on the floor as she scampered up the stairs to Vera's room. She opened the door into the bedroom that was so dark it was impossible to determine that it was indeed 1 in the afternoon.<br>"Vera! Get up, Vera! It's time for your grad!" Falicity said.

Her friend, a big mass underneath thick, black blankets responded with a faint groan. Falicity threw open her black curtains and the sunlight poured in, making Vera kick a couple of times before the blanket was tossed aside and Vera was revealed.  
>Vera was a lightly tanned skinned 19 year old girl with jet black hair (that was messy at the moment) and light blue eyes. She rubbed her eyes and pulled her black top straight.<br>"Falicity. What the-...Is my dad gone already?" She spoke with a light Queens, New York accent.

"Already?" The bubbly girl giggled. "It's 1 in afternoon time!"

Vera looked at her friends perma-grin right before pulling her blanket over her head again.  
>"Then my dad won't mind if I skip school today..."<p>

"You can't skip today, silly!" Falicity said, pulling the blanket clean off Vera's bed. "It's you're graduation. Hunter, Zack and Kris are waiting!"

Vera groaned again before plopping herself out of bed and straightening her black and red plaid pajama pants while she walked to her walk in closet.  
>"Urg...Graduation..." Vera moaned to herself.<p>

"Aren't you excited?" Falicity squeaked, oblivious to her BFFs tone. "It's you, Hunter, Zack and Kris' last day of school...then the summer time! And you know what that means, Vera!"

"Yeah great..." Vera said sarcastically, walking past Falicity in blue skinny jeans, black sneakers and a black lace bra. "Another summer of whoring myself out because of that stupid prophecy..."

Falicity paused. She knew the Northgate Tournament's true intentions made Vera upset. The Northgate Tournament was a duelling tournament set up in the amusement park owned by her father's company by her parents four years ago when a prophet for told that Vera's first born child would bring forth utopia.

...

In Vera's memory, the prophet came to her house on that same day four years ago...  
>The prophet, named Valona was a dark skinned, clearly Egyptian woman. She dressed like an Egyptian would, making Vera's older sister, Sammy openly mock her sense of style.<br>"Scary Spice called...She wants her hair do back..." The 16 year old girl said as she sat cross-legged on the couch beside Vera's mother, who sat in between the two sisters.

Vera's mother, Vivian Hardy had Egyptian heritage, there for she had lightly tanned skin that came out naturally in both her and Vera, along with jet back hair. Sammy, however, having her mother's jet black hair also, had her father's light skin, making her bitter and jealous towards her younger sister.  
>Mr. Hardy, first name Kane, was mostly German; giving him light skin blonde hair and bright blue eyes.<p>

Valona went on to say that 15 year old Vera was destined to be the mother of the fabled Utopian Child, and this did not sit well with Sammy.  
>"Why her? Why can't I be so important?"<p>

"Because Sammy...It's not all about you, you know." Vivian replied, making Sammy leave the room with a huff.

"Sammy." Vera called to her sister, only to be answered to with a vulgar remark.

...

Vera pulled her back shirt on. The shirt reached her mid belly and the sleeves reached past her elbows. Grabbing her school bag, she told Falicity to follow her out to her car.  
>When they got to the garage, Vera laughed to see Falicity's backpack was already sitting on her blue <em>Cobalt's<em> hood.

...

Vera's older sister, Sammy (known more likely as Samarra Hardy), four years later and now 20 years old, she still had a light skin tone, and gemstone green eyes, but her jet black hair was kept cut to just sweep her shoulders.  
>After graduating from high school at age 19 and a year of correspondence courses, she got a job as the new receptionist at Kaiba Corp. She wore very short, dark purple dresses and blackwhite heels to work. On the occasional day of typing data, appointment arrangements and answering phone calls, Vera would show up to try and talk to her, prompting Samarra to call security and have her escorted out.  
>That day, however, Kane came to Samarra at work...<p>

"Sammy?"

"It's _Samarra_, Mister Hardy..."

"It's _Dad_, Samarra."

Samarra looked down at her keyboard and then up to her father.  
>"What is it, Dad...I'm working."<p>

"I know...You're working very hard considering how we raised you and I'm very proud of you."  
>The conversation went on to Kane telling Samarra that his company was running low on funds and needed sponsorship for the next tournament.<p>

"And what do you want me to do about it?" Samarra asked.

"Listen, Samarra...It's very clear your boss likes something about you, and I've my share of rumors...Do your dad and your sister a favour and see if you can-"

"Sweet talk my boss into parting with some money?"

"Precisely."

...

Vera was marched down to the fitting rooms to get her rob and hat. Once she was ready, she was kicked out of the fitting rooms to find her best friends, Hunter Rivera-Walker, her brother Zackeriah and Kristoph Mercer.  
>Hunter was a light skinned, tall, thin young woman with long hair mixed of various shades of brown. Some strands were straight and the rest was a mess of dread locks leading down to her lower back. She had one blue eye and one green eye; it was unclear whether they were contact lenses or not.<br>Hunter`s brother, Zackeriah was also light skinned, tall and thin with dark brown hair and light golden colored eyes. He had one pierced ear.  
>Kristoph Mercer was a light skinned short young man with smoky black hair, grey blue eyes and freckles. He wore thin rimmed glasses.<p>

"Hey Vera...Where the hell were ya?" Hunter asked in her southern accent.

"I was running late..."

"Vera is totally lying!" Falicity said, running up with her camera and snapping a picture of Hunter scowling at Vera. "She tried sleeping in...She forgot she was my ride!"

"Thank you, Falicity..." Vera said.

"You're welcome!" She said, snapping another picture, making Vera blink from the flash. "So are you guys excited for the next tournament, cause I sure am!"

"Yeah great..." Vera said. "I can't wait..."

"Oh, come on Vera..." Kristoph said. "Maybe you'll find the one this year."

After a small silence, the group started to laugh.  
>"Yeah!" Hunter laughed. "And maybe Falicity...Will get laid this year!"<p>

Falicity laughed.  
>"Very funny guys."<p>

"Grads!" The principal yelled. "2 minutes." She looked at Vera. "Nice to see Miss Hardy decided to show up."

Vera chuckled a bit to herself. "Not like I had a choice."

...

Meanwhile, in Domino City, Joey tripped over the side walk and fell to his knees in his rush. Without more than a minor scrape, he picked himself up and kept running for the school, late for his own graduation.


	2. 2 TITLES

**Note from the author:  
>Part 2 of the slow beginning. This chapter has 2 titles.<strong>

Chapter 2:  
>The Gang Meets SummerSammy's Job

"I'm here!" Joey huffed, throwing the doors to the auditorium open.  
>His friends; Yugi, Tristan and Tea met him.<p>

"Joey! Good day to be late!" Tea nagged.

"I slept in!" Joey protested. "It ain't my fault!"

"Didn't we tell you to put your alarm clock on the other side of your room so you wouldn't just shut it off and go back to sleep?" Tristan said, as the group pushed Joey towards the fitting room doors.

Once Joey was in his graduation robes and struggling with the cap, Tea went to aid him.  
>"Unbelievable, isn't it?" She asked the group.<p>

"Yeah." Yugi replied. "Duellist Kingdom, Battle City, The Pyramid of Light...And now we're graduating High School."

"We've had some crazy and good times throughout the years." Tristan stated.

"Indeed." Bakura said, walking up to the group. With him he had a tall, white haired and brown eyed young woman wearing a black dress. She looked like she could have been Bakura's twin sister had she been younger. "Guys, this is my older sister, Summer. She comes around summertime to visit."

"Pleasure to meet you, Summer." Tea said, shaking Summer's hand.

"Likewise." She replied in her own English accent.

"Bakura, you never told us you had a sister." Joey said.

"She lives in Detroit." Bakura stated. "So she doesn't get very many chances to come and visit that often."

"Like Bakura said...I come along a lot during the summertime." Summer reassured. "It's all I can do. I work for most of the rest of the time."

"What do you do to keep you too busy to go see your little brother more often?" Tea asked.

"Well...When I'm not teaching dance, I'm work at a dance club in Detroit."

"Wait...Teaching dance?"  
>Tea then realized that Summer was Bakura's famous sister that he wanted her to meet.<p>

Summer was 20 years old and a high school dropout. While Yugi was sizing her up, Yami contacted him from the back of his mind.  
><em>"Yugi?"<em>

"_What is it, Yami?"_

"_This Summer...She seems friendly, like Bakura...but...I sense she's hiding something..."_

"_Something serious?"_

"_It's hard to tell..."_

Yugi was brought back by the sudden, but loud announcement.  
>"All graduates report to the stage now! Joseph! That means you too!"<p>

"Nyeh!" Was Joey's reply.

...

"Sammy...Where are you?" Vera groaned as she starred at the empty seat beside her mother.

"She's a big girl." Falicity said from the seat beside her and waving to her mother from the stage. "Besides...Didn't she move to Domino City for a new job or something? Maybe she had to work or forgot even..."

"Falicity...Domino City is only an hour by car from here...My dad drove there this morning to remind her."

"Besides, she should be allowed to take today off so work can't be an excuse." Hunter said from Vera's other side. "Kaiba Corp or no Kaiba Corp."

"No way!" Falicity yelped before shushing herself. Vera was called up to accept her diploma and handshakes. Falicity leaned over to Hunter. "Sammy got a job at Kaiba Corp? That is amazing!"

"Yeah...She started out just keeping the grass pretty...then she gets bumped up to Floor Foreman in one week...and now after a month at her job...Sammy is making a lump sum an hour as a secretary to the big man, Seto Kaiba himself."

"Wow."

Vera sat down and the group continued their discussion despite the repeated shushes coming from a number of teachers.  
>"How she got such a good job and income in one month is beyond me." Vera said. She deeply admired and loved her older sister and it hurt her to think that Sammy hated her.<p>

"I heard she's doing her boss." Kris said.

"That would do it." Zack concurred.

"Guys...Don't talk about Sammy like she's a slut..." Vera said.

"Oh right...You're the only slut in your family, aren't you Vera?" Hunter asked as she wrapped her arm around Vera in a playful manner. "Isn't that right whore-bag? Yes it is."

Vera sighed. She was used to Hunter's remarks and knew she never really meant them.

...

They didn't know it, but both graduation classes graduated at the same time.  
>As Yugi threw his hat in the air, Solomon shook his head.<br>"It took him two and a half hours to get that hat on, and 2 seconds to ruin all that work."

"I sympathize." Summer said from beside him. "It took Bakura almost two..."

...

Hunter went to the payphone in the school and put her coins in it and dialled Sammy's home phone number and let it ring.  
><em>Hello. You've reached Samarra Hardy. I'm not at home right now, so leave a message and I'll get back to you as soon as I can. Bye.<br>_Hunter said: "Bitch!" before hanging up. She then flipped through the phone book and found Domino City, then Kaiba Corp. She dialled and let it ring. An Eastern European sounding woman answered. It wasn't Sammy.

"Good afternoon, Kaiba Corp. May I connect you?"

"Samarra Hardy." Hunter said. "She used to sit where you are. Where is she now?"

"What?"

"Samarra! Hardy!" Hunter yelled, catching Vera's attention.

"Oh...Miss Hardy works in the office of Mr. Kaiba now." The woman said. "I connect you?"

"If you can, please." Hunter said.

Hunter waited for a few moments until Sammy picked up.  
>"Hello. Seto Kaiba's office-"<p>

"WHERE ARE YOU BITCH!" Hunter boomed, making Sammy hold the phone away from her ear.

"Isn't it obvious? I'm at work!"

"Well shouldn't you be at Vera's Graduation?"

"I work six days a week, Hunter." Sammy said.

"This is a good excuse to 'do some things' for your boss and ask for-"

"I TOLD YOU! THOSE ARE RUMORS!" Sammy stood up and slammed her fist on the desk, attracting Kaiba's attention. "LEAVE ME ALONE AND LET ME WORK!" Sammy shouted again before hanging up and huffing.

"Sammy?" Kaiba stated from his office doorway.

"Sorry about that." Sammy said sitting again. "That was some girl my sister goes to school with...She's really impulsive."

"What did she want?"

"She wanted me to go to my sister's high school graduation."

"Why didn't you?"

"I was here."

"Sammy...On days like this...You can-"

"I chose to work." Sammy said as she continued the computer work she was doing until Kaiba unplugged the computer.

"Take the weekend off, Sammy."

"No." Sammy said, staring into his eyes.

"You already did." Kaiba said, heading back to his office.

Sammy huffed and gathered her stuff.  
>When she got home to her apartment, she flopped down on her bed and closed her eyes. She recalled the memory of her job interview.<br>"I'm here for a job interview?"

"I'll escort you to Mr. Kaiba's office." The current receptionist said. Once they got there, she introduced Sammy to Kaiba, who hadn't taken his eyes off his laptop.

"Send her in." Kaiba said, closing his computer.

Once the receptionist left, Sammy decided to cut to the chase.  
>"Okay, Mr. Kaiba...-"<p>

He raised his hand to her.  
>"Before you start, Miss Hardy...I reviewed your resume and I called your previous employer. He-"<p>

"Not him." Sammy said.

"Let me finish...He said something along the lines of inappropriate relationships with the other workers...and I can't allow something like that here. Show yourself out."

"That man was a sleazy pervert who was sexually harassing all the workers with-excuse my technical speaking-breasts and a...Well you get it. He fires anyone who won't do as he says and he trash talks everyone who has the guts to quit on him."

"All this is at the Police Department?"

"I know...Ironic, isn't it?"

Kaiba paused.  
>"Miss Hardy..."<p>

"Call me Samarra or Sammy, please."

"Very well then...Samarra. Now I'm not so sure if I have a place for you here right now. Please show yourself out."

Sammy couldn't believe that he wasn't even giving her a chance. It was a 13 story building. He had room for a thousand more employees.  
>"Is it because I'm a woman?"<p>

"Not at all." Kaiba said with no emotion, working again on his laptop.

Sammy had the right mind to slam that computer shut on him, but she chose to just leave. Taking her purse to fast, her Duel Monsters cards came out of the side pocket and ended up all over the floor. Sammy uttered an expletive and kneeled over to pick them up.

Kaiba glanced at her low necked dress and cleared his throat.  
>"Samarra Hardy...Hardy...Are you by any chance related to Vera Hardy?"<p>

"She is my younger sister."

"So you're her infamous older sister."

"The one and only." Sammy concurred, picking up the last of her cards.

"The one they say is easier to sleep with then Vera...Even under her conditions?"

Sammy jumped like she'd received an electric shock. "Excuse me?" She said in a tone that showed that she was clearly insulted.

"Let me try that again..." Kaiba said. "So...What kind of job were you looking for?"

Sammy blinked and leaned down on the desk. "Why the sudden change of view about me, Mr. Kaiba?"

"Wait...Hold on...I never said I'd hire you...I may refer you to someone..."

Sammy snickered. "Shall we discuss this more deeply over coffee?" She asked, taking big risk.

He paused again, making her nervous. "I'm free after 5 o'clock."

"So is that a yes, Mr. Kaiba?"

"We'll see after dinner, Miss Hardy."

Sammy started to leave before something hit her. She turned around to face Kaiba again. "But I said coffee, not dinner."

"I know." Was all Kaiba said before waving her out of his office.

...

Sammy opened her eyes.  
>That event led to several dinner dates, a duel. In that duel, Sammy came very close to beating Kaiba with her two best cards; Dragon Queen and The Queen's Side Dragon. After that duel, Kaiba took Sammy home and they became very close. In easier terms, all those rumours that Kaiba and Sammy agreed to deny were as a matter of fact true. Seto Kaiba was not only Sammy's boss, he was also her boyfriend.<p> 


	3. Post Grad

Chapter 3  
>Post Grad<p>

At 11:30 Saturday morning, Hunter broke down Vera's door off the hinges from the force of her kick. "Honey! I'm home!"

Vera jumped, waking up from a nightmare.  
>"Hunter! Knock that off! We just fixed the door." She ran her fingers through her hair.<p>

"Woman! Get out of bed and make me some chocolate chip banana pancakes!" Hunter said in a demanding tone.

"Okay, Hunter...First off...We all know what happens when Vera makes pancakes." Vera said.

"Vera is talking about herself in the third person." Hunter replied. "Vera needs to get up and get ready for her BFF's grad. Your cousin is coming to see you off before we catch the plane to Texas."

Vera plopped herself out of bed, unravelling herself from the blankets. She started for her closet, not noticing Hunter's evil grin. When Vera opened her closet, someone jumped out: "BAAH!"

Vera screamed and hit the unknown in the face, sending him to the floor. She then looked at him and gasped; her favorite cousin. "Marik!" She jumped to the floor to give him a hug. "I'm so sorry."

Marik cracked his nose back into place.  
>"You've grown stronger, cousin..." He said. "You used to hit like a girl."<p>

"Marik...I am a girl..." Vera said. "You grew taller."

"Yes he did..." Hunter said in a vulgar tone, topping it all off with a French laugh.

"NO!" Vera automatically responded, pushing Hunter out of the room. "Falicity will make your pancakes!"

"PANCAKES!" Hunter took off down the stairs.

Vera pinched the bridge of her nose and sighed.  
>"What am I gonna do with her..." She turned to Marik. "So where's Ishizu and Odion?"<p>

"Preparing for the Northgate Tournament." Marik said, leading her down the stairs.

"They're involved in the set ups this year's?" Vera asked, tilting her head.

"Volunteer work." Was all Marik said.

Vera flipped the subject on the way to the kitchen.  
>"So...How's the...issues?"<p>

"I cope." Marik said. "My girlfriend, Summer assists Odion in keeping him in check."

"That's good."

"How's your job going?"

"She works at the Bargain Shop!" Hunter said, eating her pancakes as Falicity kept them coming at an alarming rate. "That's Wal-Mart's midget, infemminate cousin. How do you think her job is going?"

"I love it." Vera said.

Hunter kept eating her pancakes and started to sing about them.  
>"I like pancakes, I like pancakes. They make me a happy Hunter. I am happy. I am happy. La-la-la. La-la."<p>

"Still the same old Hunter." Marik shook his head.

Marik, Ishizu and Odion had been assigned to look after Vera once she was dubbed the Utopian Mother. They were indeed her cousins through their mother. Vera's mother was their Aunt, who all three of them respected and loved dearly.  
>Marik and Vera had been close as children, and Vera looked up to Marik, despite his deadly flaws. Ishizu and Odion were just like any older cousin to a younger cousin; admirable, even thought it felt like sometimes the love wasn't there.<p>

"So Marik...Where have you been man?" Hunter said.

"To be true, I've been living with my girlfriend in Southlake City." Marik answered.

"Girlfriend?" Hunter repeated, suddenly upset. She and Marik had been together in the past and she wanted almost more than anything to be with him again.

"Yes. Her name is Summer Ryou and she is truly wonderful. With my evilness and her Britishness, we are unstoppable!"

"Marik...You're ranting on about your evilness again..." Vera said as Hunter sniffed behind her.

"Awe, cousin...You remembered to remind me about that!" Marik said, giving his small cousin a huge hug.

...

Joey met the gang outside of Duke's game shop.  
>"Hey guys. Look what I found." He said, waving a piece of paper.<p>

"What is it, Joey?" Tea asked.

"It's a flyer for the Northgate Tournament." Joey said. "It's that Tournament in Vegas every summer and now that we're done school, I think that we should form our team of five."

"Seriously, Joey?" Tristan asked.

"Yeah! See? We need five people for a team. Yugi, me, you, Duke and Tea make five!"

"Okay Joey...So we make a team." Duke protested. "But how to you expect us to gather up 1000 dollars for our 200 dollar registry fees?"

Joey stuttered. "Um..."

"And how do you expect us to get to Las Vegas, Nevada...America?"

"I never thought of that..." Joey confessed. "I guess we _can't_ drive to Vegas now can we?"

"No, Joey...We can't..." Yugi laughed. "Not unless someone has a car that can drive on water."

"Okay...Let's go talk to Kaiba..." Joey paused. "Of course, I'm kidding."  
>The group joined him in a laugh.<p>

...

After a few days, when Summer heard that they were thinking of the Northgate Tournament, she told them they'd make a wonderful team.  
>"You'd be simply smashing." Summer said from across the table in the mall food court. "You're the Domino City champions, after all."<p>

"But how are we supposed to get the money?" Duke asked her from beside her.

"Well...I could give you all a ride to the airport." Summer replied. "I don't mind at all."

"But..." Tristan protested. "I've seen your car...and it's puny. There's no way all five of us plus you and Bakura will fit in there."

"That's not the only vehicle she has." Bakura stated.

"Indeed not...I just have to drive home to Southlake City and get my short bus." Summer added.

The table erupted with laughter.  
>"You drive a short bus?" Joey laughed.<p>

"Don't laugh...Her short bus is our ride guys." Yugi said. "If we want to enter in this tournament." However, it was clear he was laughing on the inside.

"It's quite alright...I'm used to people laughing at my short bus." Summer said with a smile.

"Okay, so we get to the airport...Then what?" Duke asked. "Last time I checked, plane tickets to Vegas _weren't_ cheap..."

Bakura answered.  
>"Why not just fly with us? Since Summer is a worker for the Tournament employed by a sponsor, her and I get to fly there pretty much for the price of driving. So all you have to worry about is your registration fee."<p>

Everyone went silent, more and more things about Bakura's mysterious sister seemed to keep popping up. What was next?  
>"Alright." Yugi said. "I'll discuss with my Grandpa about traveling with you and I'm sure he won't mind."<p>

"I'll talk to my parents tonight." Tea stated.

"I'm all set to go." Duke said. "Just say the word and I'll start packing."

"My old man won't mind." Tristan huffed.

Joey added on. "Neither will mine...and I'll take Serenity along too. We all know how she likes to watch me duel."

Summer stated that her and Bakura would leave first thing in the morning to go get her short bus. The group split up to do what they had to do.

...

Meantime, Hunter was at her house for her grad party with her family all the way from Texas, New Orleans and Mexico.  
>The party was going great until there was a knock at the door. Hunter's grandfather the door and saw Falicity, looking very worried.<br>He commented on Falicity being a virgin and wished he could say the same about his grand-daughter. Hunter then pushed him away from the doorway.  
>"Thank you Grandpa. Now back to your rocking chair." She turned to Falicity. "Hey Falicity. What's up?"<p>

"Hunter." Falicity breathed, tears had clearly been streaming down her face. "It's Vera! She's been attacked again! This time it's bad!"


	4. Mess With One Mess With All

Chapter 4  
>Mess With One Mess With All<span>

Falicity led Hunter into the Grey Stone Town hospital and brought her right to Vera's room, where Marik, Ishizu, Odion and Vera's co-worker, Tara was.  
>Tara was a very tall, dark skinned girl with braided brown hair and green eyes. She was still wearing her work clothes from the TBS; red aprons with a name tag on it.<p>

Vera looked at Hunter and Hunter looked at her. Vera was shirtless and wrapped in bandages from her breasts all the way down to her stomach and the blood seemed to be trying to leak through.  
>"What the hell happened?" Hunter asked.<p>

"That's what I'd like to know." Vera replied. "I just remember being at work and these three shady looking guys walked in...They seemed innocent enough to me and I was at work...so I talked to them when they talked to me. They asked me about the 'powder blue Cobalt' outside and I told them it was my car. The guy in front just told me it was a beautiful car and then they left...Didn't buy anything or nothing. After work, I went to my car and when I was about to unlock the door, these guys in hoods jumped me and threw me to the ground...I was about to scream but one of them pressed a wet cloth against my face and everything went black."

"Chloroform." Ishizu spoke.

"Damn it!" Marik exclaimed angrily. "Why is it so easy to get that stuff nowadays?"

"Marik please..." Ishizu turned her attention back to Vera, not releasing her cousin's hand. "Go on Vera."

"That's it...Then I woke up here with you guys and Tara here." Vera said.

Tara was shaky.  
>"I-I found them...Vera...They-They were...cutting you..."<p>

"WAIT!" Vera exclaimed suddenly. "I remember voice...They were talking..."Her eyes then went wide, making the light blue even more visible then it usually was. "They said they were going to...cut my ovaries out. Why would they want to do that?" She looked around at her cousins and friends.

"You're the Utopian Mother, Vera." Marik answered.

"The Utopian _what?_" Tara exclaimed.

"Those three men were Occultists most likely." Ishizu said. "They are more on the Apocalyptic side of the worlds possible future."

"Hang on." Hunter interrupted. "Vera's been attacked by Occultists and freaks like that before...Since she was named the Utopian Mother as a matter of fact...She's even duelled her fair share of shadow games. Why was this attack so bad?"

Valona appeared in the doorway.  
>"I believe I can answer that."<p>

"You...You...mean lady!" Falicity said. "This is all your fault!"

"Please Fal." Vera said. "Let her talk."

"Thank you, child." Valona said.

"Well?" Hunter interrupted. "Why is all this happening to Vera?"

"Because...This year will be the year the Utopian Child is conceived." Valona answered. "Therefore, the attacks will increase and possibly get worse."

"What could be worse than almost getting your reproductive organs cut out?" Marik couldn't help but snap. Odion placed a hand on his shoulder.

"Hang on again!" Hunter yelled. She was not fond of Valona at all. "Vera's been opening them for everyone and anyone for the past three years at the Northgate Tournament. Why hasn't this child been conceived yet?"

"Maybe I'm sterile." Vera said. "Maybe you made a mistake, Valona."

"The scriptures do not lie." Valona answered. Ishizu nodded to confirm her statement. "You will conceive because there is something who will be taking place in the Tournament who hasn't before...He is meant to be the Utopian Father...You just need to find him."

"Can we have a name?" Hunter asked.

"No."

"Why the Hell not?"

"Hunter, calm down." Vera said, trying to sit up, but wincing. Her cousins begged her to stay still.

"Because Vera found him in the past." Valona stated as she left the room. "She now must find him again."

"What the Hell does that mean?" Hunter pulled at her hair. "Get your ass back here and ex-freaking-splain!"

"Hunter!" Ishizu exclaimed. "You're such a hot head!"

"And you're a _meh_ to me...Meaning, I don't care about you..." Hunter said, glancing at Odion before jumping into a hug like a young child does to his father who'd been gone for what felt like years. "Odie!"

"Nice to see you again, Hunter."

Ishizu looked at Vera. She was in deep thought.  
>"Vera?"<p>

"What did Valona mean when she said 'I found him in the past'?" Vera asked.

"I'm sorry Vera..." Ishizu said. "But that is something you have to find out yourself."

...

Later, Ishizu and Odion went to fetch Vera some water and food and Hunter went to dispatch the army to find whoever did this to Vera. She was outside in the hospital courtyard with a radio that she kept in her backpack.  
>"Ping Pong, this is Rubber Ducky. Come in." She said into it. "We have a 330 in post process. Repeat. Utopian Mother, also known as Holy Hoe is in danger. Come in Ping Pong."<p>

Marik shook his head while he looked at her down below.  
>"I'm your sworn protector and Hunter does more to solve the issue then I do."<p>

"Don't feel bad, Marik." Vera said. "It's Hunter...She's always over the top with things like this. Remember the guy who attacked me in the ally last year?"

"Oh, right...She castrated him right there."

"That's our Hunter." Falicity said.

Vera smiled.  
>"Fal...Do me a favour?"<p>

"Sure, Vera. Anything."

"Go down the courtyard and call Sammy." Vera said. "I think she should know what happened and I doubt she'll listen to Ma and Dad went they call her at work. They usually get to 'Samarra, this is your-' and she hangs up."

"Can't she get fired for that?" Falicity asked.

"Not at the job she has apparently." Vera answered.

...

Falicity scurried down the stairs outside and took out her cell phone, turned it on and dialled the number Vera gave her.  
>The phone rang twice before someone picked up.<br>_"Kaiba Corp. May I help you?"_

"Um, Hi. Can I have the office of Seto Kaiba, please?" Falicity asked.

"_I'll connect you..."_

And after several minutes, Sammy's voice came from the other line.  
><em>"Seto Kaiba's office."<em>

"Sammy. It's Falicity."

"_Oh great...What do you want?"_

"It's Vera. She's in the hospital here in town."

"_Is that so? Tell her to be more careful next time."_

Falicity was shocked and upset by what Sammy had just said.  
>"Sammy! This is your sister, who was attacked...not some kid who scrapped her knee on the side walk! Why are you always like this? Look, I've known you just as long as I've known Vera and I know for a fact that deep down you love her like a big sister would. Would it kill you to show it once in a while?"<p>

After a silence, Sammy replied.  
><em>"Falicity...I'm at work right now. I don't have time for this."<em>

"I was at work too when I got the call about Vera. But, you know, there are more important things in this world besides work!"

"_Now stop right there!" _

"-And I think it's by time you gave that some thought!" Falicity snapped before slamming the phone down.

...

Sammy stared at the phone as it played the dial tone before shrugging and hanging it up before she got back to work.  
>She then heard a small chime coming from her purse at her feet. She leaned down and grabbed her cell phone. <em>1 New Text Message from an Unknown Number.<br>_Sammy clicked on the text and it read:  
><em>I'm so sorry Sammy. I didn't mean to snap at you. But please consider coming back to town for a few more days. Vera would appreciate having her big sister by her side.<em>

Sammy heaved a heavy sigh.  
>"Vera...What have I told you about giving my cell number to your friends?"<br>She then replied:  
><em>Look Falicity. Unlike you, I am an adult and therefore I have a full time job. I can't get out of work as easily as you can in your part time job. Vera will be fine and doesn't need me by her side.<em>

Sammy put her phone back and went back to work. She felt her eyebrow twitch when her phone chimed again.  
>"Should I even bother?" She asked herself while grabbing the small device again.<br>Falicity had replied:  
><em>You have no idea how lucky you are to have such close family. With my father in England and my mother on the reserve all the time, I can't see why you'd be like this towards your family.<em>

Sammy groaned and fell into temptation to reply, however, she replied very vaguely.  
><em>I have my reasons. Now leave me to my work. <em>She typed before shutting off the phone and kicking her purse to the far wall behind her desk.

...

Falicity shook her head and shut off her own phone and went back into the hospital to check on Vera. She was just saying goodbye to her cousins.  
>"We'll see you at the Tournament, Vera." Ishizu reassured her. "But if you need anything at all before then, you know how to contact us."<p>

"Of course." Vera said. "Thanks for coming to check on me."

"We're just glad you're okay after what happened." Marik replied.

Just as the Ishtar's were leaving, Vera's family doctor, Dr. Mooreland came in with papers.  
>"Well, Vera..." She said, pushing her blonde pony tail aside and looking at everyone with apple green eyes. "Whoever did this to you in an attempt to give you a hysterectomy, they weren't smart at all."<p>

"What do you mean?" Ishizu asked.

"They cut open her stomach looking for her ovaries..." Dr. Mooreland answered. "We'll have to keep Vera here for a couple nights to make sure her stitches don't become infected. It's too bad...You just graduated high school, Vera. You should be out having fun."

"I'll live." Vera said. "My fun stopped the moment I was named Utopian Mother..." She then looked at Falicity. "Sammy's not coming..."

"Oh, no, no." Falicity said with a fake smile. "She said she'd be down tomorrow to see you."

"Thanks for trying to make me feel better, Fal." Vera sighed. "But I know Sammy...She's hated me ever since I was born and stole her spotlight...I could die in my sleep tonight and she wouldn't give a flying-"

"Now hold on." Ishizu stopped her. "Samarra loves you with all her heart. She's your sister."

"If that's so...She has a really weird way of showing it." Vera said before waving another farewell to her cousins.

Falicity looked at the time on the clock, it was time for her to catch the bus home. She gently hugged Vera. "You know...I've always looked at you as a sister."

Vera winced, but managed to return the hug.  
>"Thanks Fal. Same to you." <p> 


	5. Back on Track

Chapter 5  
>Back on Track<p>

Falicity, Hunter, Zack and Kris gathered at Kris' house. Kris' mother treated it like a teenagers sleepover, since she didn't know about Vera's incident. She walked into the room with a tray.  
>Kris' mother, Naknichka Mercer was a tall, slender woman with ice blue eyes, curly and fading jet black hair and wore a long grey dress. She put the tray down and smiled.<br>"There you be, children. Cheese sticks and vodka dipping sauce for all." She said in a Russian accent.

"Thank you Mama." Kris said to her as she waved and left the room.

Falicity had never met Kris' family before and she was dumbfounded. "Kris! I didn't know you were Russian!"

"Of course." Kris said. "Where did you think the 'toph' in the end of my full name comes from?"

"I just thought _Kristoph_ sounded cool." Falicity answered innocently. "Because it does...Kristoph..._Kris_-toph...Kris-_toph_..."

"Okay, Fal." Hunter interrupted. "Can we go on with this?"

"Sure."  
>Everyone went on with what they had to say while they dug into the cheese sticks and dipping sauce.<br>"Can we get drunk off this dipping sauce?" Falicity finally answered.

"No." Kris reassured.

"Are you sure...Cause I feel funny..."

"It's the placebo effect, Fal." Hunter said. "You only think you're getting drunk."

Zack took them back on track.  
>"I just hope Vera's okay...I'd really hate to see anything more bad happen to her."<p>

"She'll be okay for the tournament." Falicity said. "Hunter heard the doctor."

"Yeah, but it's what that bitch of a prophetess said that bugs me." Hunter replied.

"Why? What did she say?" Zack asked.

"That it was gonna get worse this year..."

"Worse then what happened last year?" Kris choked. "Cause that was pretty bad when-"

"Kris...Can we _not_ remind Falicity?" Hunter interrupted as Falicity started to shake and turn pale.

"They were everywhere..._Everywhere_..." Falicity moaned in deep thought.

"Okay..."

"So how are we supposed to protect Vera was demons and the occult if all this is gonna get worse?" Zack asked biting another cheese stick.

"Well...The Ishtar's are there to help this year..." Falicity stated. "And that Odion guy looks pretty tough..."

"Yeah...Now let's hope Hunter can be in the same room as Marik without breaking down." Zack said, causing Hunter to attack him.

She wrapped her hands around his throat.  
>"I'M OVER HIM DAMN IT!" She yelled through clenched teeth.<p>

"Clearly..." Zack wheezed.

Falicity grabbed Hunter's arm.  
>"No Hunter! Let Zack go!" She begged. "He's your brother!"<p>

After a while, Hunter slowly loosened her grip on Zack's windpipe and sighed.  
>"Hey...I'm sorry bro." She said.<p>

"No problem." Zack replied. "Maybe that whole Marik thing was a little harsh."

"Oh, why did I break up with him?" Hunter asked while burying her hands in her face.

"Wasn't it because it was all about...the 'S' word?" Falicity asked. "And he was holding you back, you said."  
>Hunter groaned and Falicity covered her mouth like a child you had just said a bad word.<p>

Soon, Hunter's cell phone rang. It was an unknown number.  
>"Hunter's road kill steak house." She answered the phone in one of her trademark jokes. "You kill 'em, we grill 'em."<p>

Hunter was happy to hear Vera's laugh on the other side of the line.  
>"Never heard that one yet."<p>

"Hey Vera." Hunter said, making her friends smile.

"Speaker." Zack said. "Put it on speaker phone."

Hunter clicked the speaker phone button.  
>"How ya feeling, Vera?"<p>

"Still sore...But I feel better and I can walk around now. I'm calling you from a payphone."  
>Vera said, looking around at the typical hospital lobby.<br>"I just had to get out of that white room for a while."

"I don't blame you." Falicity said. "Hospital rooms are so bland...Maybe that's why they always want you to sleep."

Vera chuckled before wincing.  
>"Owww...My stitches."<p>

Falicity covered her mouth.  
>"Oh. I'm sorry, Vera!"<p>

"Naw...It's not your fault I have stitches, Falicity." Vera said. "It's kind of my fault...I really should have assumed something was up when they started asking about my car..."

"Who could have known..." Kris stated. "Maybe they were just interested in cars..."

"Maybe...But probably not." Vera sighed. "I better get going...I'm almost out of Marik's change..." Vera paused to let her friends laugh. "Doctor Mooreland said I should be out of here by tomorrow...Sammy is supposed to pick me up...But just in case...Can I count on one of you?"

"Well, Vera...You're the only one of us who can drive..." Zack said with a chuckle. "And your car is at your house."

Vera shook her head. Was she smart to depend on Sammy?

...

Around 11:30 that night, Sammy's shift was done. She came out of Kaiba's office, straitening the bottom of her dress. She crossed over to her purse and grabbed her phone and switched it on.  
><em>1 Message from Mother. 1 Message from Father. 1 Message from Vera. 1 Message from Unknown Number.<em>

Sammy checked the one from the unknown number.  
><em>Sammy. It's Hunter. Don't forget to pick Vera up from the hospital tomorrow.<br>_The one from her mother.  
><em>Samarra. Pick up Vera tomorrow. Your father and I are busy and Vera isn't allowed to drive.<br>_The one from her father.  
><em>Samarra. Pick up Vera tomorrow. Your mother and I are busy and Vera isn't allowed to drive. <em>

Sammy sighed loudly as Kaiba exited his office.  
>"They're acting like I'm going to forget her!" Sammy yelled, pulling at her hair. "She's my little sister...Why would I forget her at the hospital?"<p>

"You don't even know why she's there, Sammy." Kaiba said.

"Sure I do." Sammy replied. "She was attacked..."

"I need more details then that." Kaiba said with a blank stare.

"Okay...Okay...Okay...So I don't know..." Sammy sighed, deleted the last message; from Vera without even looking at it. "She's only my sister...What am I? Her keeper?"

Then, her phone chimed and she took it out of her purse.  
>From Hunter's number:<br>_Bitch. Pick up your sister tomorrow, or I'll come get you.  
><em>Sammy deleted the message and immediately after, her phone chimed again; making her jump.

"You're quite popular tonight." Kaiba told her, brushing her hair behind her shoulder.

Sammy's phone chimed again, Hunter.  
><em>I know what you're doing right now...When you're done, answer this message!<br>_This message was followed by some symbols that Sammy was unfamiliar with.  
>Sammy rolled her eyes.<br>"Taunt me more...Please."  
>Then her cell phone rang. "Are you kidding me?" She answered. "I WAS KIDDING!"<p>

"Well, I was calling to kindly remind you Vera is out of the hospital at 2 tomorrow but jeez!" Hunter replied.

"I know when and where to pick her up!" Sammy stated.

"Hey Sammy...You sound kind of breathless..."

"THAT'S BECAUSE YOU KEEP BLOWING MY PHONE UP WITH REPEAT MESSAGES! I'M FRUSTERATED!" She took her phone away from her ear and apologized to Kaiba and said her goodbyes, but the conversation between her and Hunter lasted long until Sammy made her way down the numerous floors and out to her car in the garage. "Hunter, I told you to stop bothering me." Sammy said, stepping into her dark blue _Camero_ and closing the door. "And stop spreading around the rumours about me and my boss. It's a rumour we're both damn sick of!"  
>Sammy hung up the phone and sighed.<p>

"It's not me who's spreading the rumours!" Hunter said from the passenger seat.  
>Sammy shut her eyes and screamed. The scream of terror lasted for three and a half minutes. "Wow!" Hunter said, glancing at her watch. "Three and a half solid minutes without air...No wonder he likes you."<p>

"WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING IN MY CAR?" Sammy shrieked.

"I'm staying the night with you at your house." Hunter answered with a calm smile.

"HOW THE HELL DID YOU GET IN HERE?"

"Sammy. There's no need to yell. I'm right here."

Sammy exhaled loudly.  
>"How did you get in here, Hunter?" She sighed.<p>

"Well...When your father, grandfather and brothers are in jail...a lot...You pick stuff up."

"...Interesting...And who, may I ask, gave you permission to stay with me at my house?" Sammy asked, still exhaling.

"You're ma and your dad and me, of course." Hunter said pulling a duffle bag out from the backseat. "Let's go now."

"Just let me make a call." Sammy groaned before stepping out of the car.  
>Hunter watched Sammy dial her phone and tuck on arm under the other as she spoke.<br>Then she got back in and started the car.  
>"Okay...Let's go."<p>

"What was your call about?"

"None of your business..."

"Awww...Don't be like that...I thought you loved me."

"You're my sisters best friend..." Sammy replied. "I don't hate you...but I don't care for you either..."  
>Sammy said nothing else, and neither did Hunter all the way to Sammy's condo.<p>

...

**Yes...I know it;s horrible...but TRUST ME...Im building up to something here! XXD**


	6. No Need For That

Chapter 6  
>No Need For This<span>

Sammy lived in a fancy condo on the South-eastern part of Domino City. Hunter talked her ear off, not only the entire trip there, but all the way up to her room.  
>Sammy was very tempted to slam the door on her, but she managed to resist it.<br>Sammy's condominium was very large and fancy; white walls, some were painted silverish gray black leather furniture and most of the space was decorated with grey and metallic dragon statues.

"So is that why you get along with your boss so much?" Hunter asked. "You both have a dragon fetish?"

"It's not a _fetish_." Sammy answered from the kitchen. "It's a fascination."

"Fetish." Hunter said, poking one of the dragons with her finger, making Sammy yell at her not to touch anything.

"My boss and I get along so well because I respect him, so he respects me in return." Sammy said, coming out of the kitchen with a bowl of green salad. "It's all in the employee-employer relationship though...Nothing sexual whatsoever. He's my boss and I'm his receptionist."

"Meaning?"

"All I do is photocopy files for him, keep his computer files and reports in check, bring him coffee."

"Suck his-"

Sammy raised a finger before Hunter could finish. "This is your final warning about that. I don't want to hear anymore garbage about my boss being my secret boyfriend, or bed buddy, whatever you kids say. It's a rumour we're both sick of."

"Yeah, you said that." Hunter stated.

Sammy nodded and took a spot on the couch.  
>"Go help yourself to whatever you can find in the kitchen."<p>

"No need." Hunter said, unzipping her bag and pulling out a container. "Mama cooked for me before sending on the bus to Kaiba Corp. Green beans, smokies, rice and gravy."

Sammy winced as if she expected Hunter's food to explode.  
>"Keep that garbage away from me! 100 calories each bite, I tell you." She then thought about what Hunter said before. "You took the bus all the way here...I didn't think the buses ran after 10."<p>

"They don't." Hunter said. "But Mama knows one of the bus drivers and he was happy to escort me here."

"Mama has an active lifestyle, does she?"

"Ya say that again and I'll knock you into next month." Hunter growled. "I love my Mama and nobody makes fun of her in any way, shape or form!"

"Okay, okay." Sammy said. "I'm sorry."

"You better be."

"What, do I need to give you a cake that reads the words in icing on the top of it?" Sammy snapped.

"No...But a cake would be nice."

"Forget it." Sammy stood up and brought her bowl back to the kitchen. She then crossed over to Hunter's peripheral vision again. "Hurry up and eat. You're sleeping on the couch. I'm going to take a shower."  
>Sammy pointed at the blanket and two small throw pillows on the far side of the couch before she started walking towards the room to her back right.<p>

Hunter thought of something witty to say, but Sammy was already slamming the bathroom door shut.  
>"Jeez...What is her problem? Sure, I'm an uninvited guest...but I deserve some respect."<p>

...

The next morning, Hunter's cell phone chimed to wake her up. She shut her alarm off and got to her feet, cracking her back from sleeping on the very uncomfortable leather couch. She flipped on the living room light and hissed at her eyes as they stung for a moment.  
>She then stalked her way into Sammy's bedroom; a large room with a Queen sized bed against the back wall, but positioned in the middle of the room. Walls were egg shell white and metallic dragons decorated this room too. Maroon and blue curtains in a plaid design matched Sammy's blankets, Hunter took another small look at them before look at Sammy.<br>Sammy was fast asleep on her belly, her blankets and flannel sheets covered her below the shoulders. Seeing that she was wearing a black sleeveless shirt to bed, like Vera usually did, struck Hunter was shocked. _Huh...I always thought Sammy was a 'sleep nude' kind of person. Well now I can wake her up easier without shame. _

With that, Hunter raised her arm high above her head and came down on Sammy's rear end. Even though Sammy was covered by blankets and sheets, the force of Hunter's swat made a nice smacking sound and sent Sammy snapping out of her sleep.  
>"JEEZ!" She exclaimed, spinning her head around, making her neck crack to look at Hunter. "HUNTER!" She was exasperated. "How old are you? You wake me up by-You smacked my-My ass...Why-Why-WHY WOULD YOU DO THAT?"<p>

Hunter was killing herself laughing.  
>"You're buttons are too easy to push, Sammy." She smacked Sammy's behind again. "Get up! Time to go get Vera!"<p>

Sammy looked at her digital alarm clock and pointed at the fluorescent blue numbers.  
>"It's 8:30 in the morning!"<p>

"So?"

"One...Vera isn't going to be released from the hospital until three this afternoon and two...I don't even have to get up this early for work!"

"So you have been paying attention to Vera." Hunter said. "You even took today off to go get her."

Sammy looked at Hunter through half closed eyes, not because she was tired, because she was given a migraine by Hunter's IQ. "Hunter...I have Sundays off."

"Yeah...and now you have a normal weekend because you love-"

"Today's Sunday."

"Oh..."

...

Around 1:30 that afternoon, Sammy had a salad again for lunch and Hunter grabbed her duffle and followed Sammy out to her car.  
>"So...Judging by how your bed looks, you slept better than I did." Hunter said, tossing her duffle in the trunk and slamming it shut.<p>

"Why? What was wrong with your sleep?" Sammy asked, her tone lacking in actual concern.

"Oh nothing much...Just every time I'd turn over, I'd hear leather squeak and feel it full at my skin."

"Sleep in a sweater..."

"But you had the heat blasted."

Sammy huffed and started her car.  
>Her migraine got worse and worse with every random topic of conversation Hunter threw at Sammy, none of them related excluding the conversations about Sammy and Kaiba's so-called employee-employer relationship.<br>Soon, it got so severe that Sammy felt like she had no other options but to go to the front desk at the Grey Stone Town hospital and beg for aspirin.  
>The nurse at the front desk giggled.<br>"Yes...Grey Stone Town knows Hunter."

"I didn't come here to hear how much you love that obnoxious little witch...I came here to get stoned! Now give me the pills!" Sammy yelled, swiping the aspirin from the nurse and popping pill after pill.

"Oh, no, no, no, no, Miss Hardy!" The Nurse said. "Don't take all that aspirin!"  
>She took the pills away by the time Sammy had popped six of them.<br>The Nurse then took a flashlight and requested Sammy's eyes follow the light.  
>"Well you seem okay."<p>

"Yes...I feel fine." Sammy sighed, rolling her eyes in the light.

"Yeah...It's not quite the pot you used to smoke all the time in high school, huh?" Hunter said, with Vera slightly limping beside her.

Sammy blushed as Nurses stared at her with shocked and wondering eyes.

...

Sammy was almost hunched down in her seat as she drove Hunter and Vera to dinner at Vera's house.  
>"Come on, Sammy." Vera said from the passenger seat. "Get a sense of humor...and this one we all know is true...You did smoke a lot of pot back then. You'd come home wreaking!"<p>

"I will punch you in the stomach." Sammy growled. "Which should have been your abdomen...Had your attackers been smart...Now shut up and let me drive."

Hunter was in the back seat digging through Sammy's purse. She found Sammy's duel deck.  
>"Hey Sammy...Can I look at your cards?"<p>

"Whatever!"

Hunter flipped through Sammy's cards. Most of them rare.  
>"What? Only one dragon type card?"<p>

"Yes...The Queen's Side Dragon!" Sammy snapped. "She's one of my best cards. Leave her alone!"

...

When Sammy pulled up to Vera's house, their mother and father immediately came out to greet them, mostly Vera.  
>"Oh, Vera. Darling!" Vivian cried, kissing Vera's forehead. "My sweet little angel!" She looked at Sammy stepping out of her car and scanned her up and down. She hid her disappointment well; but she had not seen Sammy in a year and she showed up in such clothing. "Oh, Samarra. Isn't that dress a little short?"<p>

All Sammy did was roll her eyes.  
>"There...I brought Vera home...I'm going back to Domino now."<p>

"No, Samarra. No." Vivian begged. "Stay for dinner. We haven't seen you in a year and your father and I won't be at the Tournament this year. Besides...It's your birthday."  
>She had to beg Sammy a little more before Sammy agreed to stay. However, Sammy started to wish she hadn't when she realized that Vera's three other friends were there.<p>

"Hey there, hot stuff. Happy birthday!" Zack started.

"Save it!" Sammy snapped, putting her hand up.

"So, who's hungry?" Vivian asked, maintaining her position as the peacekeeper of the household, just as her husband was the silent oppressor.

When everyone sat down for dinner, Hunter raised her glass, drawing attention to herself.  
>"This is a special day. A day when a special woman turns 21." She looked at Sammy, who seemed displeased. "So...Here's to Sammy...She says there's nothing going on between her and her boss-"<p>

"Oh, God...Not this again..." Sammy sighed, slapped her forehead. Falicity and Vera glanced at her from each side. "I think these white walls are making my retina's hurt." Sammy was trying to drive Hunter's 'toast' away, she seemed to know what was coming.

"What are you freaking out about, sis?" Vera asked.

"It's Hunter...She's always wanting to humiliate me!" Sammy replied through clenched teeth. "Mom! Paint this kitchen!"

"As I was saying..." Hunter continued despite Sammy's looks. "Nothing going on between her and her boss, Seto Kaiba...Yet...In the time I've recently spent with her, I've noticed that her farts are silent...Silent..."

"What's your point?" Sammy finally snapped.

"If Biology class has taught me anything, it means something has been up your butt!" Hunter raised her glass again. "Happy birthday, you lose whore!"

Zack burst out laughing, but everyone else at the red cherry oak table seemed shocked and Sammy hid her face and started to weep.  
>"I'm leaving now!" She shrieked, getting up and grabbing her purse.<br>She didn't even close the door while she stepped down the stone stairs, lighting a cigarette.

Vera and Vivian chased her out to her car.  
>"Sammy!" Vivian said in a tone as if Sammy was just being bullied in grade school. "She was joking!"<p>

"Yeah...You know Hunter." Vera added.

Sammy blew smoke out of her mouth and slammed her car door open.  
>"Words cannot explain the humiliation I'm feeling right now! Out of all the things Hunter has said and done to embarrass me, this one takes the cake!" She crawled into her car and opened the passenger window. "Vera...I'll see you at the tournament...Mom...It was nice seeing you again."<br>She said before stepping on the gas and speeding off, hitting a mailbox during her left turn.

Vera glanced behind her shoulder and saw Hunter in front of the group on the front porch. She spun around.  
>"Hunter! That wasn't funny!"<p>

"I thought it was." Zack stated.

"Shut up, Zack!" Vivian snapped.

"I agree with Vera and Mrs. Hardy!" Falicity said, Kristoph nodding behind her. "That one was mean and unnecessary!"


	7. From Point A to Point B

Chapter 7  
>From Point A to Point B<span>

The next day, Vera woke herself up and got dressed quickly before grabbing her suitcase, begging the trek downstairs.  
>"Oh, Vera!" Vivian said immediately after Vera reached the bottom of the stairs. "You can't carry that in your condition. I'll get Marik to do it."<p>

"Mom. I'm okay. It's not that heavy."

"Doctor Mooreland advised you against heavy lifting in every way, shape or form, Vera Lynn!" Vivian said, opening the door and hollering for Marik.

Vera rolled her eyes.  
>"Mom...You're being over protective."<p>

"Vera Lynn...I'm not being over protective." Vivian said, taking Vera by the shoulders. "I'm just being a mother."

Marik then popped his head through the door.  
>"You called, Aunt Vivian?"<p>

"Marik. Take Vera's bag to her car."

"Marik." Vera protested. "I can do it."

Marik looked back and forth between the two who kept protesting each other. He decided to creep past Vera and took her suitcase and placed it outside by her car. He then crossed his arms and sat on the porch step.  
>It was a warm, bright day with the sunlight, but a brisk wind balanced out the suburban street.<br>A roofless Jeep with music that sounded like classic rock coming from it pulled up and Marik watched Hunter toss her own suitcase off the back and it thumped on the lawn. Hunter then jumped out and waved to the bald headed, muscle bound, tattooed man dressed in camo in the driver's seat.  
>"Thanks Pop."<p>

"Have fun at the tournament, Sweet Pea!" The man said in a thick Southern accent. He then adjusted his sunglasses and sped off.

Hunter put her luggage beside Vera's and joined Marik on the step.  
>They remained silent to each other until Falicity showed up, followed shortly by Zack and Kris.<p>

"Vera!" Hunter shouted into the patio. "The team's all here!"

"Go _W.I.B.A.S.O.A.B_!" Falicity shouted, throwing her hands in the air in joy.

Marik blinked. "Go what?"

"_W.I.B.S.O.A.B." _Falicity said. "It's our team name."

"Well, what does it mean?"

"Funny story." Vera said, making her way down the three steps. "We were registering for our first year in the tournament, and the woman asked us for our team name...See, we hadn't thought of a team name...so we all huddled to discuss some matter. Kristoph-" Vera shot him a quick glare, making Kris shrug. "-saw one of his ex-girlfriends and seemed to think she was a duelist at the time. We found out she wasn't, but seeing her there caused Kris to say out loud: _Well I'll be a son of a bitch_, and I guess that's what the registry lady thought our team name was gonna be...So next thing we know, our team name is registered as _Well I'll Be A Son Of A Bitch _and little miss perfect, Falicity cannot for the life of her curse...So we shortened it up to _W.I.B.A.S.O.A.B." _

"Oh...That makes sense." Marik replied, springing up to catch Vera as she stumbled off the last step.

"Marik...I'm fine." Vera sighed. "One step stumbled won't kill me."

"You're mom wants me to protect you, Vera." Marik said, stabilising a cringing Vera. Her stitches were starting to throb. "Protect you I shall do."

"Much appreciated cuz." Vera chuckled under her shakes. "But you sound like a bad Nick Cage movie..."

Marik helped with packing the trunk of Vera's car with the multiple suit cases, Falicity had brought six suit cases with her as always when the rest of her comrades only brought three.  
>"Falicity...Why do you always pack as if we'll be gone all summer <em>and <em>the summer after that?" Kris asked.

"Because you never know what I'll need over in Vegas." Falicity answered.

"Fal...All you really need is your deck." Vera stated, getting into the driver's side of her car. Falicity jumped into the passenger seat, Hunter took the middle back and Zack and Kris piled in on each of her sides.

Marik approached Vera's window and prompted her to roll it down, which she did.  
>"Are you sure you'll be okay out on the road, cuz?"<p>

"Marik...I'm in a car...If anyone jumps out in front of me in an attempt to get me to stop, I'll just run his ass over."

"Oh...Kind of like when you ran Steve over by accident?"

"Hey!" Vera protested putting a finger up. "Steve scared the ever living bajeezus out of me. It was a reflex to run him down."

"Vera..." Falicity said from her side. "Running people down isn't nice."

"When you're me..._Hit and Run_ is another term for _Self Defence_." Vera stated, starting her engine. "Marik..." Vera reached out the window and took her cousin by the hand. "I'll see you there."

Marik grinned and nodded his head before stepping aside to let Vera drive.  
>As he watched her car go, Vivian appeared beside him.<br>"Oh, I'm so worried about her this year."

"Don't worry Aunty." Marik said, placing a hand on her shoulder. "Odion, Ishizu and I will watch over her no matter what happens. I promise you that."

"Thank you so much, Marik." Vivian almost sobbed, embracing her nephew.

...

Once out of Grey Stone Town and on the road, Vera grabbed her cell phone and handed it to Falicity.  
>"Can you do me a favour and call Sammy?" Vera asked of her. "I'm worried about her after last night."<p>

Falicity nodded and went through Vera's contacts until she found Sammy's number. She pressed _dial_ and listened to the ringing. Falicity was always admiring Vera for her compassion and willingness to forgive, she still loved and cared about her older sister with all her heart, even when Sammy treated Vera like the gunk you find underneath your fingernails most of the time. Falicity shook her head and hung up saying: "No answer."  
>Vera took her phone back from Falicity and put it in her side compartment and thanking Falicity. Vera was certain that Sammy would interact with her once or twice during the tournament, but at the time, she was focused on the long road trip ahead.<p>

...

**Note from the author:  
>Okay, I'll admit, these past chapters have possibly been boring...but In the next chapter, we'll be getting to the tournament! WHOO! XD<strong>


	8. Vera Hardy Meets Joey Wheeler

**Note from the Author:  
>This chapter was supposed to be called, Warriors VS Banshees, but I decided to try and build up to Joey and Vera's 1<strong>**st**** duel, so forgive me...  
>Warriors VS Banshees will be Chapter 9!<br>**

Chapter 8  
>Vera Hardy meets Joey Wheeler<span>

Every second felt like an hour while Vera and her comrades waited for the small ping to sound in the noisy aircraft interior. _Ping. _  
>"Finally!" Hunter exclaimed, slamming her hands on her arm rests before shooting up to grab her carry on from the compartment above the seats.<p>

Vera, Falicity, Zack and Kris received their own carry on and headed for the exit of the jet plane with much less haste than Hunter.  
>When they met her inside the Vegas airport, she was sprawled out on the floor of the large building with numbers of people around, moaning about how wonderful the space and room was. After a certain time in a plane, Hunter tended to get a little claustrophobic, as Vera liked to explain to those who starred at her.<p>

Vera then had to part with her team for a while to wait for Marik so he could take her to rent a car. She waited for almost an hour until the plane she was waiting for landed. Her patience payed off once Marik stepped into Vera's site and she jogged up to greet her cousin with a hug.

...

Summer stepped off her own plane a few hours later; her head was pounding with exasperation. Joey and Tristan decided to cause trouble on the plane with a turbulence gag that startled almost everyone on the plane and caused an elderly man to have a heart attack. Bakura tried his best to calm her.  
>"Sis, remember your blood pressure issues."<p>

"I'm fine Bakura...But how can two 19 year old men act like 5 year olds." Summer huffed, watching Yugi and his group space out on the conveyer belt, waiting for their luggage to show up.

"You get used to them." Bakura said. "And thank goodness that girl who knew CPR was on the plane."

Summer laughed.  
>"That girl was Penny Clearheart...Captain of 3 time runner-up team."<p>

Tea happened to hear what Summer had said while she was walking up.  
>"That was her? Oh, man...I could have said hi. I admire her strategies."<p>

"You'll see her at the tournament." Summer said, taking Tylenol out of her bag and taking a couple. "Now come. We have Vegas to tour and a hotel to check into."

...

It was a 30 minute bus ride from the airport, through shiny Las Vegas to the Northgate Hotel, located on the North-West outskirt of Vegas. The Northgate Hotel was a very large building, both in height and length with a marble exterior.  
>"Nyeh!" Joey exclaimed looking up at the external lobby; trying to see if he could see the roof from where he stood.<p>

"This place is enormous!" Tea gasped with her mouth hanging open.

"It is big enough to fit the 500 teams of 5 that come here to duel in the tournament." Summer said, carrying her suitcase into the lobby. "But you'll get used to it. It's not too terribly hard to learn your way around."  
>Yugi, Joey, Tristan, Duke and Tea followed her into the building. The interior lobby was roughly the size of the average football field and the many different types of decor, mahogany, gold and navy fit decently with the marble walls, pillars and statues.<br>Summer turned to see the gaping five some, all astounded by what they were seeing. "Believe it or not, this is only a four star hotel." Summer said, adding to their astonishment.

Summer and Bakura parted with the group so they could register in the tournament. The Northgate registry table was located in the right hand corner of the lobby. It looked like someone had just dragged a table from the lobby diner to there.  
>Sitting at the table was a woman who looked of decent age, but not middle aged. She had pale skin and black hair done in dread locks and held back with a blue bandana, a couple mangled stands hanging loose by her face. She wore a black silk dress and hemp a hemp necklace with beads, and she looked very bored, sipping away at her coffee and reading a book about how to find a job suited for ones personality.<p>

"Excuse me." Yugi ringed softly, getting her attention. She looked up at the group with dark brown eyes that shone through thin rimmed glasses. "Is this where the teams register for the Northgate Tournament?"

"Geez, you newbie." She said in a sarcastic tone. "What tipped you off? The huge sign above the table that says "Northgate Registry" or the huge banner on the table that says: "Register here"?" She sighed deeply and loudly before reaching down into a bag and pulling out an empty form. "Please, all five of you sign the form. Fill in the appropriate spots and such and such. It's all pretty straight forward. When each one is done with the form, starting with the team Captain, pass the form to your next team member." She slapped the form down, handed Yugi a pen and went back to her book.

"We need to pick one person to be a Captain?" Tea asked.

The woman rolled her eyes.  
>"Yes." She huffed as if exasperated by the question. "The team captain is the said leader of the team. The captain must be in all duels unless he or she has a good reason not to attend, in which case he or she selects a second person to be a stand-in captain for SIC for short...That's what the SIC means right here." She pointed at a spot on the form that requested an SIC be named.<p>

"It's only fair for Yug to be Captain." Joey said. "He's the best darn duelist among all of us."

Yugi nodded with a smile. "Only if you be my SIC, Joey."

"Nobody asked you to discuss your arrangement verbally, people!" The woman rang. "Just sign the form so I can take your profile pictures and we can all get on with our day!"

"Fine, fine...Geez." Yugi said, starting to fill out his part of the form.

After all the necessary paperwork was done, the woman introduced herself finally.  
>"Congratulations." She paused to look at the form. "Team Millennium...No doubt you drew that from a hat...My name is Marilyn Wichita, and I am the director of photography for this Tournament. You will see me around a lot with all sorts of camera types. Right now I'll ask all of you to stand in front of this white wall."<br>Marilyn took a picture of everyone on the team individually and then one of the whole group together. She then prompted them to follow her back to the table, where she printed off photo ID cards and gave them to Yugi, Joey, Duke, Tristan and Tea. Each one said:  
><em>Yugi Motou-Captain. Team Millennium.<br>Joey Wheeler-SIC. Team Millennium.  
>Duke Devlin-Duelist. Team Millennium.<br>Tristan Taylor-Duelist. Team Millennium.  
>Tea Gardener-Duelist. Team Millennium.<br>_"Thank you; you are now a registered team in the Northgate Tournament. Present these ID cards to the front desk and you will be shown to your rooms. If you keep your cards with you at all times, all accesses are paid by the Hotel, which is sponsored heavily by Hardy Industries and Kaiba Corp. However, your rooms require a deposit of 100. Have fun." Marilyn then went back to her book.

"Figures Kaiba would sponsor something like this." Tristan said.

"Yeah." Joey added. "Too bad he ain't duelling in the tournament. My warrior deck would surely mop the floor with him this time."

Joey's outburst attracted the attention of the girl behind him. It was Vera, who had given herself three blue streaks in the front portion of her hair. Falicity walked beside her as she loudly laughed at Joey, meaning for him to hear.  
>"A <em>Warrior<em> deck? Please, you won't last 8 seconds, let alone a round in this tournament with a majority of Warriors."

"What you say, Queensite?" Joey growled.

"You heard me, Brooklander!" Vera replied. They recognized each other's accents, despite how think Vera's was compared to Joey's.

"That's it! Bring it on!" Joey thundered, stepping up to Vera before Duke and Tristan held him back.

"Joey! Are you nuts?" Duke asked. "That's Vera Hardy!"

"Never heard of her!" Joey stated.

"Never heard of me? Never heard of me?" Vera fumed. "I am Vera Lynn Durina Hrady. Daughter of the CEO of Hardy Industries and Captain of Team W.I.B.A.S.O.A.B!" She flashed her ID card.  
><em>Vera Hardy-Captain. Team W.I.B.A.S.O.A.B.(Well I'll Be A Son Of A Bitch)<em> "I demand the respect and recognition I deserve for suffering through this tournament in more ways than one!"

Yugi blinked at the team name.  
>"W.I.B.A.S.O.A.B? Well I'll Be A Son...How do you get a team name like that?"<p>

"It's a long story that involves clumsiness and a registry agent who is even more ignorant that the current one." Falicity replied with a small giggle. "I'm Falicity." She added, showing her own card.  
><em>Falicity Hartman-Duelist. Team W.I.B.A.S.O.A.B.(Well I'll Be A Son Of A Bitch)<em>

Joey broke free of Tristan and Duke to stomp over to Vera, who stood her ground with a smirk on her face. "As we were discussing here...What were you saying about my Warrior cards?"

"Oh, just that they would be DOA after the first round." Vera said.

Joey practically roared.  
>"Alright Vera! You're a duelist, I'm a duelist, so let's step outside and settle this like duelists! My warriors against your...uhhh..."<p>

"Banshees." Vera enlightened.

"Banshees!" Joey continued, as if he never had to pause. "My warriors against your banshees!"

"Fine by me." Vera replied. "This will be fun."

As Vera walked towards and out the door, Falicity texted to Hunter, Zack and Kris. _Vera is duelling outside! _

"Yug." Joey walked up to Yugi. "Do you know what a banshee is?"

Yugi shrugged. "Sorry Joey. Beats me."

"Oh Joey!" Vera called from outside in a taunting tone. "I'm waiting!"

Joey growled and dashed outside to the front courtyard on the other side of the parking lot, a large slab of concrete with fountains and rock gardens around where Vera was already standing.  
>"Okay Vera." Joey said, readying his duel disk. "You ready to get your butt kicked all the way back to Queens?"<p>

"Sorry Joey...But your butt will be kicked back to Brooklyn in less than three turns against me!" Vera replied, readying her own disk.

They both inserted their decks into the disks and eyed each other with heated competition from across the courtyard. It was New Yorker to New Yorker.  
>Duke shook his head. "Joey had no idea what he's getting himself into."<p>

"What else is new?" Tea asked.

"LET'S DUEL!"


	9. Warriors VS Banshees

**Note from the author:  
>If I make any errors in writing about the duels, please bare with me. It's hard describing duels, and for life point matters...I failed math twice...enough said...<strong>

Chapter 9: Warriors VS Banshees

"Ladies first." Joey said.

Vera smirked.  
>"What a gentleman..." She drew a card. "But you'll wish you hadn't done that."<p>

"Nyeh, just make your move."

"Nyeh, don't rush me!"

"Be careful Joey." Yugi said from the side lines. "Vera and Samarra Hardy's decks are both made of one-of-a-kind cards. Most of the cards she'll play will be ones you haven't seen before."

"I'd listen to your friend, Joey." Vera taunted. "Listen to him and give in. Admit that Banshees are better than Warriors."

"Never!" Joey yelled. "Move! Now!"

"Fine!" Vera yelled back. She took a look at her hand and made her first assault. "I'll start by placing two cards face down." She picked two hidden cards and placed them on the field before grabbing a third card. "Then, I'll summon Dark Elf Warrior in defence mode." She flipped the sideways card over and her monster was revealed; an elfin woman clad in silver armour, grey skin, grey eyes and white blonde hair. She held a grey sceptre and kneeled in front of Vera as any defence monster would. She had 1600 ATK and 1500 DEF.

_Nyeh? I thought all her monsters were Banshee types. _Joey blinked. _That looks like a Spell Caster to me, and why'd she play it in defence mode? Hiding from me already? Or is she trying to pull something. I should attack with Axe Raider, but what if one of her face down cards is a Trap? _

"While I'm young, Joey!" Vera taunted again.

"You asked for it!" Joey stated. "I place one card face down and summon Axe Raider in attack mode!" And with that, a hidden card and the muscle bound, axe wielding warrior monster appeared. "Axe Raider!" Joey commanded. "Attack the Dark Elf Warrior!"  
>Before Vera could blink, her monster was sliced in half and was no more, disappearing from play with a gasping sound and a bang. "Ta DA!" Joey taunted.<p>

"That's just what I was about to say." Vera said.

"Huh?"

"Reveal Trap card!" Vera said, and the card flipped itself face up and was revealed. "Alone at Death!" It had a dark purple colored picture on it with a unhealthy and rather upset looking woman holding a glowing sphere in its picture.

"What's that do?" Joey asked.

"Funny you should ask." Vera stated. "Alone at Death can only be activated when a monster on my side of the field, that isn't a Banshee is destroyed. Once that happens, I can special summon any Banshee's I have in my hand, and as it turns out, I have two... Forest Banshee and Petit Banshee!" Vera put down the two cards in Attack position. Forest Banshee was a mono-colored female card. Green. Long green hair and a green dress, even pale green skin and green eyes. 1700 ATK and 1100 DEF. Petit Banshee was nothing more than a small, grey skinned child with long black hair tied back in a pink ribbon that matched her old style dress. Her eyes shined a glowing yellow. 200 ATK and 400 DEF.  
>"But wait, I'm not done." Vera continued, growing through her deck, taking a card and shuffling. "I can also special summon Banshee Elf Warrior in attack mode also."<p>

"What?" Joey exclaimed as a third monster appeared in front of Vera. Another elfin female clad in silver armour, but this one with glowing yellow eyes, purple skin and hair, and a crossbow for a weapon. 2000 ATK and 1500 DEF.

"If you think that's bad, there's one more thing my Trap lets me do!" Vera said, clearly having too much fun at Joey's expense. "If I give up 500 life points, I can have Banshee Elf Warrior destroy the monster that destroyed her non-Banshee sister, and Axe Raiders attack points will be deducted from _your_ life points!" Vera's life points dropped from 4000 to 3500. "Now, Banshee Elf Warrior, destroy Axe Raider and avenge your sister!"  
>The monster replied with a shriek before firing an arrow from her crossbow and destroying Axe Raider, and causing Joey's life points to drop from 4000 to 2300.<p>

"Awe, man!" Joey said, looking at his hidden card, but not activating it.

"What's Joey doing?" Tristan huffed. "One turn and already he's at a huge disadvantage! He lost nearly half his life points and Vera has three monsters on the field, and he has none."

Vera shrugged. "I'd love to attack you directly, Joey...But my Trap has a down side. I have to end my turn without my second battle phase. That's just too bad for me."

Joey took a quick look at Vera's three banshees before drawing a card and looked at it. _Little Wing-Guard? I was hoping for better...He's only strong enough to take down that Petit Banshee...But what if Vera has another trick up her sleeve? I'll never know unless I try. _

"Joey seems stuck." Tea said.

"Why wouldn't he be in his situation?" Tristan stated, making Joey ruffle his hair in exasperation.

"Whose side are you on?" He snapped.

"Oh no. He's right." Vera said. "I mean, look at you."

"Laugh it up, Banshee Girl." Joey replied, turning his attention back to Vera. "I summon Little Wing-Guard in attack mode, and then I'll have him take out your Petit Banshee. Do your thing, little guy!" On command, Little Wing-Guard destroyed Petit Banshee, dropping Vera's life points to 3300.

Vera blinked a couple times, seeming to be surprised. She then cracked a small smile. _Oh yeah. So he can duel. Maybe this will be fun. _She then giggled. "Okay. I'll give you that one, but is Little Wing-Guard strong enough to take out Forest Banshee? Go Banshee! Trump Little Wing-Guard!"

"Hold everything!" Joey objected through the shriek of the attacking green banshee. "Remember the card I put down before?" He then revealed the Trap card. "Trap Hole! Say bye-bye to Forest Banshee!" And with that, Forest Banshee was gone to the Graveyard before she could reach her target, but Vera seemed unfazed. "Little Wing-Guard is saved!" _Great. I took down 2 banshees...but who knows how many more she has in her deck, and to add to that, I still have Banshee Elf Warrior to worry about and that broad has 2000 attack points. _

"Waste of a good trap, don't you think?" Vera asked. "Why not just wait until an attack by my more powerful banshee?"

"I have my reasons." Joey said, it was nothing but a blurt.

"Just make your move so I can take another whack."

_Vera just jumped right into that trap. _Falicity thought from the side lines. _She usually thinks about stuff like that and has plans for it...What could her other face down card be? _

Joey drew his next card. It was Panther Warrior. _Alright! Panther Warrior! I can use him along with the Shield and Sword magic card in my hand to take out her second Elf. _"Alright, Vera. Here I come! Panther Warrior in attack mode! He's gonna take down your Banshee Elf!"

Vera scoffed. "You're delusional! Their attack points are equal, he'll destroy himself too."

"Sure, his attack points are the same as your banshees, but they won't be for long. Not after I used this magic card. Go! Shield and Sword!"

Vera screamed in shock. "Shield and Sword?"

"That's right! Now the attack and defence points of both our monsters are swapped, making Panther Warrior's attack points 1600 and your purple skinned freak-show over there only 1500."

"No! You can't do that!"

"Yes, I can! And I'll prove it now by sacrificing Little Wing-Guard so Panther Warrior can attack!" Joey made Little Wing-Guard disappear to the Graveyard before Panther Warrior lunged for an attack, destroying Banshee Elf Warrior and dropping Vera's life points from 3300 to 2800.  
>"What's the matter Vera?" Joey taunted looking at her mortified face. "Upset that all your work to summon that monster was for nothing in the end?"<p>

"You destroyed one of my best monsters..." Vera said. "I'm not fooling around anymore! It's on!"

"Bring it!"

Vera drew Graceful Charity from her deck.  
>"I use the magic card Graceful Charity. It lets me draw 3 cards, as long as I discard 2." After Vera drew her three cards, she put 2 magic cards away before looking at them. 1 specifically caught her attention. A monster card, 5 stars with the picture of a blonde, angry looking woman with red eyes and pale skin, clad in white. <em>Yes! Clawed Banshee! She can cut Joey's Panther Warrior down to size...<em>

_Uh oh...I know that grin. _Falicity thought, looking at Vera. _She must have drawn a good Banshee...If not the Seamstress, but she'll need Ritual of the Damned and 2 monsters to sacrifice in order to summon her..._

"Okay Joey." Vera said. "Playing a card combo like that was a good move and it surprised me to no end."

"Why thank ya." Joey replied.

"Let me finish." Vera stated. "But...Now it's time for the Banshees to take back control here! I summon Clawed Banshee to the field in attack mode!" Clawed Banshee was revealed and her namesake was no joke. She had long sharp black finger-nails that looked more like claws at their length. 2300 ATK and 1700 DEF. She shrieked as soon as she entered the field.

"Man, Banshees sure are noisy broads." Joey said, his ear ringing.

"The Banshee screams because of her deep and crippling loneliness and need to sympathise with those who have lost." Vera replied. "There's your random fact of the day."

_Poor Vera...She knows all too well about the crippling loneliness..._ Falicity thought.

"Clawed Banshee!" Vera ordered. "Destroy Panther Warrior with Five Clawed Slash!" With one upward swipe of her hand, Clawed Banshee cut clean through Panther Warrior and sent him to the Graveyard. Joey's life points decreased to 2000. "But wait! I'm not done! Reveal face down card! Banshee's Rage!"

_Banshee's Rage! _Falicity blinked. _I thought she would have put that down while waiting to draw Clawed Banshee. _

"Banshee's Rage?" Joey asked. "I assume it goes with little miss manicure over there."

"As a matter of fact, it does." Vera answered. "If I give up 1000 life points, I can make Clawed Banshee attack you directly."

"What?"

"Joey's in trouble now." Yugi said.

Once Vera's life points dropped to 1800, she beckoned Clawed Banshee to attack Joey directly as she said she would, and Joey was defenceless, leaving him with 300 life points.  
>Joey exclaimed in anger in his head. <em>She's already got me down to 300 life points! Man, this babe is tougher than I thought. I gotta think of something fast, or I'm a goner. <em>He looked at his deck before drawing. _Come on, Heart of the Cards. Show Ol' Joey some love! _  
>He drew with his eyes close and then peeked at the card he drew. Scapegoat. <em>Huh...Scapegoat...I can use these little guys to protect me from Blondie until I can find something strong enough to take her out. <em>He took a look at his hand. _And I have Skull Dice...That could help... _  
>"Okay Vera...My turn. I place 2 cards face down on the field and end my turn!" <em>I just hope I can draw a good card next turn. <em>He thought, looking at Graceful Dice and Swordsman of Landstar left in his hand.

Vera was intrigued by Joey's move. "Run out of monsters?" She taunted. "Why just put 2 face down cards and not protect yourself?"

"If I'm so defenceless, why not attack me? Come on! What's stopping ya?"

_Hmm, even this Brooklander is smarter than he looks, he proved that a few moves back...One of those cards he put down must be a trap...Well...I'll never know unless I attack...But I really should prepare myself. _She drew a card. _Oh good...Giant Trunade. This card should stifle any traps or magic cards he tends to sick on my Banshee. _  
>"Okay Joey...Have it your way. I place one card face down on the field and move Clawed Banshee to attack you directly again!" Her monster readied for attack. "Finish him, Banshee!"<p>

"Hold it! Reveal face down card! Scapegoat!"

"Nice try! I knew you weren't dumb enough to just let me take you out! You proved that a few turns ago, that's why _my_ face down card is Giant Trunade!"

"Giant Trunade! Oh no!"

"Oh no is right! Now both your cards that you laid down are removed from the field and returned to your hand, leaving my Banshee still clear for your life points!"  
>With that, the Banshee virtually slashed Joey across the chest and reduced his life points to 0.<br>"And that's game." Vera said.

Joey knelt and punched the ground. "Arg! I lost!" _I don't know which is worse...Losing, losing in only a few turns, or losing to her..._

Joey's comrades ran to his aid and the other members of W.I.B.A.S.O.A.B. ran out of the hotel lobby.  
>"Vera!" Hunter called. "What happened? Is the duel over? Who won?"<p>

"I did." Vera answered. "It was quite easy actually."

Hearing those words, Joey raged. "That does it! I demand a rematch!"

"Are you serious?" Vera asked, not amused. "Look, Banshees are better than Warriors, I think I just proved it once and for all."

"That's just because you didn't give me a chance to call out any of my best monsters!"

"Oh, how appropriate. I didn't get to call out any of _my _best monsters."

"Say what?"

"Clawed Banshee maybe a pretty kicking card, but she's not Vera's strongest." Kris elaborated.

"That's right, so it's best not to challenge me again." Vera added, starting to lead her team back towards the hotel.

"We'll duel again, Vera! Mark my words!" Joey shouted.

"I look forward to it." Vera replied, looking back at him and locking eyes. Blue met brown and it sent a shiver up Joey's spine.


	10. Northgate

Chapter 10:  
>Northgate<span>

With his head held high, Joey followed the rest of his team into the conference room of the hotel. It was a very large double door to the proximal-left of the lobby's main hall. The room was quickly filling with people of all ages and races. Yugi looked around after everyone on his team took a seat, he looked at the pamphlet that Marilyn gave to him and read that there was 34 teams already registered from the year before and even more teams had just registered. Everyone could tell who was new and who wasn't to the tournament by the look of anxiety or lack of in each teams faces as each team of five mingled amongst themselves and others stretched out to say hello to other teams.

The room was filled with people of all cultures, it seemed. There was a team of five girls, all blonde haired and in pink, a team of Goth rocker dressed teens, and one team that Duke spotted before anyone else.  
>In this team, all girls, they were dressed in more of a punk fashion, but one girl caught Dukes eye like an insect in a bug zapper; this girl almost identical to him. They both shot each other cold stares and then the girl pretended she didn't see him.<p>

"Duke, who's that?" Tea finally asked.

"That's my twin sister, Debra..." Duke answered quietly.

"You have a twin sister?" Joey almost yelled.

"I don't want to talk about it." Duke said. "Her and I went our separate paths and we've been fine. Let's drop it!"

Just as Duke crossed his arms and sat back, Sammy was in the front of the room yelling for everyone's attention.  
>"Attention please." She said, but the room was still too noisy. "Quiet!" She yelled. Still, too much noise for her voice to carry. She pinched the bridge of her nose and shook her head before straightening her back and screaming: "EVERYONE! SHUT YOUR YAPS!"<br>This prompted the noise to go down to mere whispers between team mates. "That's better." Sammy growled.

"Who's that?" Joey asked.

"That's Samarra Hardy." A girl answered from behind him. Joey looked back and she was short, slightly taller than Yugi and had red hair, green eyes, freckles, and dressed in a tee-shirt and jeans. "She's the older of the Hardy sisters, Grey Stone Town district Duel Monsters champion 2 years running and one of the commissioners for the tournament. She works in Seto Kaiba's office. A real nasty tempered woman they say."

"Awe, well she and Kaiba make a perfect couple." Tristan mused.

"Don't tell me you don't know..." The redheaded girl said. "Samarra has only been working for Kaiba Corp for under a year, yet she got promoted to office so quickly...Most people say she's Seto Kaiba's girlfriend outside of the office."

Sammy continued her speech.  
>"Now, I'm only going to say this once! Welcome to the Northgate Tournament. Every year a number of Duelist from around the globe come here to the Northgate Hotel in Las Vegas to take part in the tournament...But this tournament isn't all about Duel Monsters." She looked at some confused faces show up. "No...Another focus of this tournament is a showboat for a bogus prophecy about the Utopian Mother, also known as, my sister, Vera." She gestured to Vera, who fronted W.I.B.A.S.O.A.B. to her left. The Legend of the Utopian Mother states that when her first born child will be the vessel for our long time lost world peace. If you want more information on this garbage, google it! You have computers in your hotel rooms with access to the Northgate database, where you can look at the decks of your opponents."<p>

"Man...This chick sure likes to hear herself talk." Duke said.

"The matches of the official tournament will start first thing in the morning." Sammy continued. "The teams that will be duelling off first will be announced later on tonight, the two teams are expected at the duelling grounds by 7 am. Duels will run from 7 in the morning to noon, a victory sends your team up the ranks to have a chance to face off against the champions, Will I'll Be A...Screw this...W.I.B.A.S.O.A.B, but to do that, you'll need to win against the runner up team, The Card Vixens. Fronted by Debra Devlin." Sammy flipped the page on her paper she was reading. "Two members from each team will duel, the Captain and one other member of said team, however...the same member of your team cannot, I repeat...CANNOT...Duel more than once in one day. You have teams of FIVE, people! No playing favourites!" Sammy paused. "That's all I need to cover, I really do not want to be here."

Hunter laughed, and despite Vera's coaxing, she blurted out her next insult towards the tall woman. "Yeah! You'd rather be riding a metaphorical White Dragon right now!"

Sammy's cheeks flushed red with exasperation and she turned her head towards Hunter as the crowd before her giggled.

...

Yugi led his team out of the conference room with his pamphlet in his hands before he heard a familiar voice.  
>"Yugi!" Marik shouted as he trotted over.<p>

"Hello Marik." Yugi replied with a smile. "It's good to see you. Are you duelling in the tournament?"

"No." Marik answered. "Ishizu, Odion and I are here to protect our cousin, Vera."

"Vera? Vera Hardy?" Tristan repeated.

"Yes." Marik said. "The Hardy's are blood related to the Ishtar's. Mrs. Hardy, my aunt Vivian used to be my father's sister, but she escaped the tomb. That's all I really know, I'm afraid."

"Why does Vera need to be protected, Marik?" Tea asked.

"Yeah, she seems to be able to hold her own, especially when she creamed me in a duel!" Joey interrupted.

"Yeah, I heard about that." Marik said, trying not to laugh out loud at Joey. "But Joey...Her team became Champion Team for a reason, you know...and she is known as the Banshee Duelist because of her skills with those Banshee cards."

"Oh, I thought she was called the Banshee Duelist because she is loud and annoying." Joey snapped.

Marik shook his head.  
>"Vera is a very kind spirit, but she is ruthless when it comes to duels." Ishizu said, walking up from behind the group. She swapped her usual light colored dress for a more fashionable looking black and gold one.<p>

"Hello Ishizu." Yugi replied. "Where's Odion?"

"Watching over Vera." Ishizu answered. "It's a very complicated story, but Vera needs to be protected this year..."

"Why?" Yugi asked right before a gunshot echoed through the lobby and caused everyone else to duck, run and hide and Marik and Ishizu to bolt in the direction of the noise.


	11. The Utopian Burden

Chapter 11: The Utopian Burden 

Everyone rushed into the duel arena, where the gun shot sound came from. Vera was shaking in Odion's arms, but seemed to be okay. On the ground near the two was a man wearing all black, laying on the ground with a hand gun by his hand; dead and a woman cop holstering her gun.  
>"What the hell happened?" Marik demanded to know. "Jeez, it's not even the first day!"<p>

"I-DON'T-KNOW-WHAT-HAPPENED! HE-JUST-WALKED-UP-TO-ME-AND-PULLED-OUT-THE-GUN!"Vera screamed, her sentence sounded like one word, she was so hysterical.

"Vera, calm down." Ishizu said to her shaking cousin. "Everything's okay now."

"HOW-CAN-I-CALM-DOWN? I-HAD-A-GUN-TO-MY-HEAD-ONLY-A-FEW-SECONDS-AGO!"

"Vera...Breathe into the bag!" Marik took a folded paper bag out of his pocket and unfolded it. Vera snatched the bag and breathed into it, as she proceeded, her breaths got less shortened and her tears slowed down.

The female police officer had long red hair, tied back in a pony tail, a typical police officers uniform. She was tall and freckle skinned with apple green eyes.  
>"Something like this doesn't usually happen to our little Vera until the 3rd or 4th day of the tournament." She said. She then put a hand on Vera's shoulder. "Poor little angel."<br>The officer's name was Twyla MacDevon and she was a constable for the Las Vegas Police Department.

It wasn't long before other duelists started to come forth to see if Vera was okay.  
>"Dammit Zack!" Hunter yelled. "I told you we shouldn't have followed Kris to the cafe and stayed with Vera!"<p>

"Hunter, I'm okay." Vera reassured before she popped the paper bag and screamed. She then turned to the lady cop. "You saved my life Twyla, thank you."

"You're welcome, Vera."

Finally, Sammy approached the crime scene.  
>"What the hell happened?"<p>

"There you are slut-a-tron." Hunter said. "While you were off with your sugar boss, your sister almost got shot!"

Sammy gritted her teeth.  
>"Would you stop it with the boss jokes?"<p>

"Never, nickel hooker!" Hunter said.

Sammy looked at Vera.  
>"Did you lose a duel to this guy...or did you beat him and he pulled a gun again?"<p>

"Neither, Sam." Vera said. "He just walked up to me and tried to blow my brains out!"

"Be more sympathetic, Samarra." Ishizu said.

"Be more what now?" Sammy replied in a sarcastic tone.

...

While the LVPD and Paramedics took the shooters body away, most of the duelists seemed to retreat to their hotel rooms. Yugi and his team were among the small portion that stayed around the lobby. It wasn't long before they saw Vera wandering around, seemingly aimless. They decided to follow her, soon discovering that she was, as a matter of fact wandering aimlessly, in a trance of thought.

_Why is it all happening so soon? How much time do I have before someone get's lucky and catches Odion and Marik off guard? _Her eyes started to tear up as she stared at herself in the window she stopped before. _What am I going to do? What am I going to do?  
><em>She then spun around when she saw reflections behind her and prepared to scream; exhaling when she saw it was only Yugi, Joey, Tristan, Duke and Tea.  
>She whipped her eyes as quickly as she could before addressing them all, getting to Joey last.<br>"Warrior boy." She addressed him.

"Banshee girl." He addressed right back.

"Joey." Tea snapped.

"Hey! She started it!"

"Oh, real mature Joey." Vera said, putting her hands on her hips.  
>Joey was ready to pounce on her, but Tristan and Duke seized him by each arm.<p>

"Cool it, Joey!" Tristan yelled. "Cut her some slack!"

"Yeah! Cool it, Joey!" Vera repeated. "Do you have any idea what I went through this afternoon?"

"Yeah, Vera. Do you mind telling us what exactly happened?" Tea asked.

Vera exhaled before sitting on the table beside her.  
>"See...I'm the Utopian Mother..."<p>

"What's that?" Duke asked.

"Well...Long story short, my first born child will bring forth a perfect world...So all these Egyptian prophets are forcing me to have a baby before I'm ready to be a mother." With every sentence, Vera's voice louder and more upset sounding. "Why not my sister? Sure she's a self-centered, heartless witch...but she's the man eater, not me! Why me dammit! Why me!" She exhaled. "Sorry...I've had to explain this story so many times and each time, I get more frustrated."

"Vera." Tea exclaimed. "If you don't mind me asking...If that's what this whole tournament is really about...Then why haven't you gotten pregnant yet?"

"I DON'T KNOW! I'VE TRIED AND I'VE TRIED!" Vera shrieked, making Tea, Yugi and even Joey jump. "53 PARTNERS! 53 AND NO BABY!"

"How is that possible?" Yugi asked, not sure how to continue the question.

"You tell me, I have no idea...Apparently only my "soul mate" can father my first born baby... Maybe that's why my sister can't carry this weight..."  
>As the conversation progressed, Vera found a friend in Yugi and his friends, however, she and Joey still had their tensions; both being eager for a rematch.<br>"Thanks a lot for listening, you guys." She said. "I haven't been able to vent like that in a long time."

"You're welcome, Vera." Yugi said. "You have a huge burden to carry and it must be hard."

Vera cracked a small smile before Zack ran up.  
>"Vera! There you are!" He said breathlessly.<p>

"Zack? What happened?" Vera asked, standing up from the table.

"Hunter sent me to find you. We have no idea what happened, but Falicity is duelling Sammy."

"Falicity is duelling Sammy?" Vera repeated in shock. "She doesn't stand a chance!"

"Quick, Vera! Follow me! They're out in the lobby!" Zack took off down the hallway with Vera not far behind and Yugi's team not far behind her.

...

**Author's note:  
>I'll admit, I'll try to keep up this rhythem, character development then duel, character development then duel. Blah blah blah, you get it. Sorry if this was a boring chapter. The next one will be better!<br>Falicity and Sammy duel!  
>~Bae.<strong> 


	12. You Can't Run From Yourself

Chapter 12  
>You Can't Run From Yourself<span>

Everyone raced down to the lobby and Falicity was there, duelling Sammy just as Zack said. Slowly, people were coming in to watch, some starting to whisper:  
>"Look. It's Falicity Hartman from WIBASOAB duelling against the Grey Stone district champion, Samarra Hardy."<br>Vera joined the rest of her team and Yugi's team joined Bakura, who watched from a few meters to the right of them.  
>He watched Falicity with anticipation and admiration.<p>

Sammy was still standing at 4000 life points with one monster on the field, 1 card face down. Her monster was a pale skinned female dressed in a short skirted "ring master" fashion. Golden eyes and long pink hair. 1900 ATK and 1500 DEF.  
>Falicity stood at 3800 life points with no monsters and 1 face down card.<p>

"Okay Sammy, my turn." Falicity said, drawing a card. "I summon The Beast Slayer's Sister in defence mode!" The Beast Slayers Sister was a monster in the form of a very small elfin girl, not intimidating at all with 500 ATK and 800 DEF. She had blonde hair in a pony tail, green and gold clothes and light skin. She was sitting with her knees to her chest in front of her master.  
>Falicity paused. "And I'm done."<p>

"Fal!" Vera blurted to Falicity. "What are you doing? Sammy will cream you!"

"She insulted me, Vera!" Falicity answered. "I'm going to show her who's boss!"

"You plan on doing that with such a little pipsqueak of a monster?" Sammy responded. "HA! Not likely!" Sammy drew a card. "I summon Metropolis Archer in attack mode!" She put down her card she'd just drawn and her monster appeared. Another female card, pale skinned, black hair and a shredded and skimp black dress. 2000 ATK, 1800 DEF and armed with a bow and quiver.  
>"Metropolis Archer! Destroy The Beast Slayers Sister!" Sammy ordered as her new monster drew and arrow and prepared to fire. The arrow fired and the small girl was gone.<p>

Falicity wasn't bothered.  
>"By destroying The Beast Slayer's Sister, you activated her special ability allowing me to summon The Beast Slayer to take her place." Falicity went through her deck and found the card she needed and put it in her hand before shuffling and placing her deck back in her duel disk. She summoned The Beast Slayer, which seemed like the same monster, but aged by 20 years and armed with a golden bow and quiver. 2400 ATK and 1600 DEF.<p>

Vera's faith in Falicity's victory over Sammy switched that moment.  
>"Oh, I didn't think Fal would be able to make that move at such a short amount of time! Beast Slayer is stronger than both Ring Master Bulletstorm and Metropolis Archer! You're gonna do it Fal! You can beat her!"<p>

Hunter pulled Vera to the side.  
>"I wouldn't count Falicity out of the fire just yet, Vera." She whispered. "You know Sammy's deck...You duel her all the time, Sammy hasn't played her most bad ass monsters yet."<p>

"I know...Let's hope Fal doesn't give her the chance to...Or she's done for again."  
>The two turned to watch the duel again.<p>

"Beast Slayer, do me a favour and destroy Ring Master Bulletstorm!" Falicity yelled out before her monster obeyed, firing an arrow at Sammy's monster, Sammy retaliated with the trap card Negate Attack; cancelling out the Beast Slayer's attack. Falicity huffed. "No harm done, I'll just use Monster Reborn to bring The Sister back and end my turn."

Falicity and Sammy now both had 2 monsters each on the field. Sammy drew and blinked. "Harm done now, Falicity." She said. "I sacrifice Metropolis Archer to summon Bulletstorm's Tiger and I'll put him in attack mode."  
>Metropolis Archer disappeared and was replaced by a large armoured, growling tiger with 2800 ATK and 2300 DEF. Falicity gulped until Sammy continued. "However, I can't attack when Bulletstorm's Tiger is summoned, so I'll skip the rest of my turn."<p>

Falicity was getting nervous, she'd seen Bulletstorm's Tiger before when Sammy duelled and it was one of her most powerful monsters. She drew anyways and gasped, it was the card she needed. She jumped around and cheered for herself, making Sammy ask what she was so happy about in a snide tone.  
>Falicity answered by holding up the card she needed.<br>"Polymerization! I'll use it to fuse The Beast Slayer and Beast Slayer's Sister together to make Angelic Guardian!"  
>With that, the two blondes were replaced by another monster; an angel with golden blonde hair, light gold eyes, blinding wings and silver armour. 2800 ATK and 2500 DEF.<br>"Angelic Guardian, destroy Ring Master Bulletstorm!" The monster obeyed, shooting an arrow through Sammy's monster and destroying her, causing Bulletstorm's Tiger's attack point to drop to 2000 and Sammy's life points to drop to 3600. Falicity smiled. "I knew that once Ring Master Bulletstorm is destroyed while her Tiger is on the field, he loses 800 attack points!"

"I see Fal did her homework!" Hunter exclaimed in happiness.

"Maybe she _can_ beat her!" Zack added. "Come on, Fal!"

"Not much harm done." Sammy said, drawing. "I'll switch Bulletstorm's Tiger to defence mode and summon Metropolis Warrior, also in defence mode." The Tiger crouched and Sammy's second monster; a staff wielding woman dressed all in black with long black hair, dark eyes and pale skin appeared, kneeling in front of Sammy. "And that's my turn."

Tea sought the need to be supportive, after all, she saw any friend of Vera to be a potential friend of hers.  
>"Come on, Falicity." She said. "You got her hiding now."<p>

"Sammy's not hiding." Hunter said, not taking her eyes off Sammy, who stood there, cool as a cucumber. "She's waiting..."

"Waiting? For what?"

"The chance to summon her most bad ass monster...The very same monster she used to become our district champion." Hunter answered. "If Sammy summons said monster, Falicity will be forced to give up..."

Sammy glanced at her hand, she had two out of the three cards she needed to summon the monster Hunter was talking about. The two cards were Polymerization and a monster card called Smoke Zombie, another called Xeno Quadruped.  
><em>Okay...I have Smoke Zombie, Xeno Quadruped and Polymerization in my hand...All I need is to draw Basilisk and I'll be able to put Falicity down. <em>

Falicity drew another Monster Reborn and glanced at the Dark Magician Girl that was sitting in her hand for a while.  
>"I use the magic card Cost Down so I can summon the Dark Magician Girl in attack mode!" And so, the Dark Magician Girl appeared in front of Falicity, beside Angelic Guardian.<br>Sammy gritted her teeth a little. "Dark Magician Girl, you destroy Metropolis Warrior and Angelic Guardian, you destroy Bulletstorm's Tiger!"

Sammy's life points remained untouched, but she was defenceless, causing her stress to start her next turn.  
><em>Both Dark Magician Girl and Angelic Guardian are much stronger than Smoke Zombie... Uh, I'll just draw and see what comes up. <em>As she drew, she overheard Zack talking to Hunter.

"Wow...Look how nervous Sammy looks...It's not like her."

"SHUT UP!" She yelled, looking at the card she'd drawn. A monster card called Hammer Witch.  
><em>Oh good...Hammer Witch...She may not be as strong as any of Falicity's monsters, but at least she can buy me some time so I can try and get Basilisk out of my deck...<em>

"I'll place Hammer Witch on the field in attack mode and end my turn." Sammy said as Hammer Witch, a leather clad pale woman with black hair and gold eyes appeared standing before Sammy, an over-sized mallet behind her back.

"Why all the hiding, Sammy?" Falicity asked.

"Don't get cocky yet...I'm not done." Sammy replied.

"Yes you are, because it's my turn." Falicity said, drawing a card. "Hey Sammy...I drew my new card. I got it from my cousin, it's called Painful Choice."

"Umm... What does that one do again?" Sammy asked, putting her cards close to her chest, as if protecting them from being stolen.

"You have to discard your whole hand and draw a whole new one...but show me that new hand and I pick one card from those six and it's sent to the graveyard too...and to end my turn, I'll have Dark Magician Girl destroy Hammer Witch!"

"Nice one, Fal!" Kristoph exclaimed.

"Yeah, you got her in a corner now." Tea added on.

Everyone's attention moved to Sammy, who stared at her hand, specifically Polymerization, Xeno Quadruped and Smoke Zombie and shook. She bit her lip so hard she drew blood as she discarded her hand, and her attack points dropped down to 2900 once Hammer Witch was destroyed.

"What's the matter Sammy?" Hunter taunted. "Did Fal punch a huge hole in your stratagem?"

"Whoa, whoa, whoa." Sammy said. "That's a big word for a hillbilly."

"DIE BITCH!" Hunter screamed, bolting for Sammy, only to be stopped by Vera and Joey, who were on either side of her.

"Calm down Hunter!" Vera said. "Breathe! Breathe!"  
>Hunter took Sammy's hillbilly and redneck jokes to heart because of her Louisiana heritage, it was another fact aside the one that most duelists in the tournament, including Yugi, Joey, Tristan and Duke thought she was a boy.<p>

Hunter breathed in and out harshly.  
>Sammy ignored her and drew, she'd drew the magic card Team Effort, monster cards Safire Hammer Witch, Nova: Queen of Metropolis, Dragon Queen, Basilisk and the trap card Return from the Different Dimension. She felt like celebrating an excellent hand until she remembered something.<br>"Oh...I have to show you my hand now, don't I?"

"Indeed." Falicity replied.  
>Sammy showed her new hand to Falicity and she observed the cards. <em>Wow...How lucky is she getting a hand like that?...Well, it looks like she drew Basilisk...Should I get rid of that? No...She drew Return from the Different Dimension too...Oh, she has a Hammer Witch and Team Effort...I need to get rid of one of those or I'm dead.<br>_"Okay Sammy...Discard Team Effort."

Sammy shook her head and discarded the magic card. "Huge slip up, Fal!"

"Oh no! I should have made you discard your Basilisk instead!"

"Something along those lines sweet-pea." Sammy said. "Anyways, I believe it's your turn."

Falicity hesitated, and drew a card.  
>"I boost Dark Magician's attack points with Mage Power by laying down this trap card with it."<br>Dark Magician Girl's ATK increased to 2500 and her DEF increased by 500 as well to 2200. "And that ends my turn."

Sammy drew a card. "I'll place two cards face down and summon Basilisk: King of Serpents in attack mode, Falicity." Sammy's two face down cards appeared in front of her before a large, grey snake did. "Isn't he handsome?" She asked with a chuckle looking up at her monster with 2100 ATK and 1700 DEF.

"He's handsome," Falicity started sarcastically while drawing. "but he won't be around for long. I'll place Dark Magician Girl in defence mode and have Angel Guardian attack Basilisk! "

"Oh no...Fal isn't thinking this through." Vera said, prompting Yugi, Joey, Tea and Hunter to look at her. "Sammy's two face down cards...One of them has got to be Return from the Different Dimension and the other one will save her Basilisk and start off her next turn!"

"Beast Slayer, attack Basilisk!"

"Hang on a second there, Falicity!" Sammy interrupted. "Reveal trap card... Negate Attack!"  
>At Sammy's words, a vortex absorbed the arrow fired by the Angelic Guardian and Sammy's Basilisk stayed in play.<br>"It's my turn Fal...and you're done. I reveal my other face down card, Return from the Different Dimension to return Smoke Zombie and Xeno Quadruped from the graveyard to the field!" Two new monsters were put into play, one more unattractive looking than the other, Smoke Zombie was a normal looking zombie male with smoke expelling from his green scabbed skin and Xeno Quadruped was a four legged creature with a pyramid shaped head/body, jagged teeth and seven tongues.

"Yuck!" Joey exclaimed. "I think I preferred the monsters that looked like her."

Sammy didn't know whether to take the statement as a compliment or insult, but she shrugged it off and went on with her turn. "Now, I'll use this Polymerization card I drew after you made me discard my other one to fuse these three monsters together to make my ultimate killing machine!" She laughed as all three monsters disappeared in a cloud of dust, revealing a monster that reached the roof of the lobby in its place. This gigantic monster was grey in color, with a snake-like body with four tentacles on the bottom of its body, no eyes, retractable teeth and a long tongue that almost reached the floor. It roared at Falicity, to advertize its strength. 3900 ATK and 3000 DEF. "Meet the King of Nightmares, Falicity Hartman." Sammy said smirking.  
>Falicity was in tears. This was the same move she was hoping she'd stopped Sammy from making. There wasn't a single monster card in her deck that could overpower the King of Nightmares and not a single spell or trap card that she could hope to bring it down. Rather than see her two favorite monsters destroyed, Falicity put her shaking hand overtop her deck and surrendered, prompting Sammy to shake her head. "I knew you'd only waste my time, why I accepted your challenge, I'll never know."<p>

Falicity's team ran to comfort her with hugs and morale support.  
>"You did your best, Fal."<br>"It's okay, you'll get her next time."  
>"You came so close."<p>

Vera gritted her teeth.  
>"SAMMY!" She shouted back at her sister, who had just pushed the up button on the lobby elevator. "How could you?"<p>

"How could I?"

"You heard me! You knew that you immensely out-ranked Fal! Why didn't you at least go easy on her?"

Sammy shrugged and got into the elevator.  
>As Falicity wept, humiliated, Bakura's alter ego burned with rage.<br>_She must pay..._

...

Later that night, as Sammy slept, knocking at her door woke her. She glanced at the clock by her bed side. "1:30 in the morning, are you kidding?" She got up and answered the door, Bakura standing there. "You? This better be important."

"Silence mortal!" Yami Bakura said to her, forcing his way into the room. "What you did today was unacceptable in my books! I'm all for the complete and utter humiliation of my opponents, but I will not allow you to cause Falicity Hartman any sort of pain!"

"Why do you care about Falicity Hartman?" Sammy snapped. "You know she has a crush on-"

"I thought I told you to shut your whore mouth!" Yami Bakura snapped back, seizing the woman by the front of the night gown, then by the hair, forcing her to her knees. Sammy exclaimed in pain as Yami Bakura spoke to her, keeping a tight grip on her hair.  
>"Now listen closely... I can see right into your soul, at age 15 when you discovered how important your sister was going to be, you became starved for attention so you started drinking anything you could stomach and smoking whatever you could get your hands on, then you started putting yourself out to anyone who asked at age 17 and got yourself expelled from school for numerous activities that involved all three of those topics." He watched in sadistic pleasure as Sammy's eyes started to become foggy. "Then you took the only job you could find for a girl of your...stature and that was cage dancing!"<p>

"Please stop." Sammy begged.

"You cage danced your way right to a reputation of main attraction at Adele's, didn't you...Dragon."

Sammy flinched. "How did you know my stage name?"

"I said I can see into your soul, and I know you need a look into it as well." Yami Bakura stated right before Sammy's vision faded and she saw herself at age 18, standing at a dresser putting on dark eye makeup and wearing a leather outfit that looked like she was preparing for a burlesque dance.

Sammy shook in horror. "That's me!"

As 18 year old Sammy applied the last of her mascara and red lipstick, a large set woman appeared through the bead curtain. "You're on, Dragon." She said.

"Adele." Sammy said as her young self sighed and put on a huge fake smile at herself in the mirror before leaving the room.

After Sammy was alone for the longest time, she yelled at the ceiling: "Okay! I've learned my lesson! I made some bad choices!"

"No, you're not done!" Yami Bakura's voice echoed in her head. "Not quite yet..."

Right after, Sammy gasped at the site of her 9 year old self walking through the beaded curtain and looking up at her in disgust. "I can't believe I let me turn into you!" She snapped.

"It...It wasn't your fault." Sammy said.

"Yes it was! Jealousy and a lot of it that did this! It all could have been avoided!" The 9 year old Sammy shouted, causing Sammy to tear up more. "You're rotten to the core, Samarra Hardy! Rotten to the core!"

"STOP IT!" Sammy screamed at the top of her lungs.  
>The next thing she knew, someone was shaking her.<p>

"Sam? Sam! Wake up, Sam!" Kaiba said, not releasing his grip on her arms until he saw her eyes open.

Sammy gasped and sat up. She panted felt cold from the beads of sweat dripping down her skin. She looked up at Kaiba, who had come through the door connecting their rooms together. Then she spotted Mokuba, who was peering in the doorway.  
>"What happened?" Sammy asked, breathing in.<p>

"That must have been some nightmare you had." Kaiba answered. "Mokuba and I could hear you screaming all the way in the other room."

"It was a nightmare..." Sammy sighed. "But it felt so real..."  
>She fell back down and sighed in relief, resting her hand on her forehead.<p>

...  
>Yami Bakura grinned coldly from his own room, clutching the glowing millennium ring in his hands.<p> 


	13. Barbed Coil

Chapter 13:  
>Barbed Coil<p>

Vera's 9 o'clock sound sleep was crudely brought to an end by the sound of Hunter pounding on her room door and yelling erratically. Vera fell out of bed, shot up and ran to the door, expecting something horrible like a murder.  
>Vera threw open the door and Hunter demanded she get dressed and follow her down to the arena.<p>

Vera practically ripped her jammies off and replaced them with light blue jeans and black tee-shirt, she put on her running shoes and followed Hunter down the stairs while brushing her hair with her fingers.  
>"Hunter, this better be important because if Sammy sees me like this..." Vera said.<p>

"Trust me Vera. It's a matter of life and death for all of us!" Hunter said leading Vera to the duelling arena. Vera had chosen to sleep through the first elimination duel.  
>"Look at this Vera!" Hunter yelled, pointing out the rank board.<p>

Vera swinted at the board. "What's wrong? It's just the team names. There's 11 out of the 12 teams left, nothing out of the ordinary, Hunter."

"Look closer Vera." Hunter said, as Vera brought her face closer to the board.

"I still don't see what all the hoopla was about..."

Hunter pointed out their team name. "Look! W.I.B.A.S.O.A.B!"

"Yeah...That's us."

"And we're ranked number TWO!"

"HUH!" Vera was shocked. They had been number one in the ranks for the past 2 years. "Who passed us?"  
>Vera looked at the number one ranked team. Barbed Coil. Vera looked over at the other board, Barbed Coil was a team of pale skinned girls who all dressed in a gothic-punk fashion. Not one of them didn't have a facial piercing or black with another color for hair.<br>The team captain was in the center, she was tall and wore black jeans, boots and a grey halter top. Her lip was pierced and her secondary hair color was orange. Vera looked at her file:  
><em>Team Captain: Olayinkah Lived<br>Signature Card: "Sorceress of the Living Dead" (ATK 2300 DEF 1900)_

"Those bitches!" Hunter yelled out.

"Let's not be so harsh, Hunter." Vera said. "They're obviously tough opponents."

"But still...We have to be number one!"

"Who says we have to?"

Hunter went silent for a few moments before Falicity, Zack and Kris appeared.  
>"Vera?" Kris said. "Wow, you look different without make-up."<p>

This prompted Vera to hide her face and head up to her room again.

...

Once Vera applied the last of her eye liner and decided she looked like herself again, she headed back down to the lobby. On her way there, she ran into a tall, pale skinned girl with black and orange hair and hazel eyes. Vera recognized her as Olayinkah Lived.  
>"Vera Hardy." She said. "I'm Olayinkah Lived and I am pleased to meet you." The metal-head girl said automatically shaking Vera's hand. "I can tell that even after we duel in the finals together, we'll be the best of friends."<p>

"Hello...Olayinkah. Congratulations on becoming number one in the ranks." Vera said, shaking back.

"Oh, Marilyn may have bumped us up to number one after our duel this morning, but I'm positive it was a calculations malfunction. There's no way I could ever out class someone like you."

Vera smiled at how friendly the seemingly malicious girl was. Olayinkah revealed the Vera that she was 21 years old and the oldest of her team. Her team consisted of four more girls named Iris, Brooke, Lacuna and Angelia and they all dueled with dark typed cards.  
>Soon another girl, as tall as Vera with apple green eyes, black and red hair, pale skinned wearing a dark green dress walked up, announcing herself to Vera as Iris Yolanson, supporting duelist in team Barbed Coil.<br>As the two talked to Vera, she was too compelled in the conversation to see the silver object in Olayinkah's hand, however, her hand shot back into her bag as Falicity, followed by Bakura, Yugi and Joey came up the stairs.

"Vera!" Falicity called out to her.

Vera looked.  
>"Fal! It's nice to see you met Yugi." She at the same time felt awkward because she had been meaning to introduce her to them. Hunter she was unsure about because of how she tended to be with new people.<p>

"How are you, Vera?" Yugi asked.

Before Vera could answer, Iris squealed and shook Falicity's hand furiously.  
>"Oh my stars! Falicity "Angel Duelist" Hartman! I am a huge admirer! Iris Yolanson of Barbed Coil."<p>

Falicity smiled. "Nice to meet you, Iris."

Bakura raised an eye brow before he heard his other half talking to him about how he sensed a darkness in the two females.  
>Olayinkah stared at him as if she could sense his other half as well.<p>

"Love to stay and chat." Olayinkah said. "But Iris and I have a place to be at the moment...Right Iris."

"Absolutely." Iris responded.

Olayinkah walked right up to Vera, almost _into_ her.  
>"We will meet again, Vera." She said. "And not on the dueling field either...I promise."<p>

Joey and Falicity watched Olayinkah's eyes as she talked to Vera and the look they gave out sent a shiver down both their spines.  
>Vera stated that she hadn't eaten yet and offered to buy the group brunch, clearly oblivious to the negative energy around; even The Pharaoh was bothered by Olayinkah and Iris.<br>Once the group was in the lobby, Joey tapped Vera on the shoulder.  
>"Vera. Can I talk to you for a sec?"<p>

"Sure." Vera said in a confused tone.

Joey then turned his head to Yugi.  
>"Yug... You, Fal and Bakura go find a table. We'll be there in a second."<p>

Hesitantly, Yugi beckoned the two to follow him.  
>Falicity kept looking back at Vera and Joey.<br>_Oh My Gosh...They make an adorable couple! _She thought, hiding her smile the best she could.

"What's going on, Joey?" Vera asked.

"Vera...I know we're sworn rivals and all and I'm still waiting on that rematch, but I feel compelled to look after you." Joey explained.  
>Vera tilted her head and he continued. "Those broads from Barbed Coil...There was something about them that bothered me..."<p>

"Bothered you?"

"Yeah...The way they were looking at you."  
>Vera tilted her head again, Joey continued. "Especially Olayinkah, or whatever her name is...She gave you a cold look. I don't trust her, and neither should you."<p>

"Oh, Joey...You're just being paranoid. You're just like Marik." Vera said, giving her head a shake. "Now, how about I give you that rematch...but _after_ we eat. I'm starving."

...

Meanwhile, Olayinkah sat on the bed of her hotel room, the other members of her team around her. Barbed Coils standing in captain was named Lacuna Greene, she was more tanned than the rest of her team, but still pale with brown eyes and yellow streaks in her black hair. Her outfit consisted of black pants, leather shoes and a yellow tube top under an unbuttoned washed out jean jacket.  
>Brooke Pries was pale skinned, had blue eyes and mixed blue in with her hair. She wore a blue skirt with a black and white striped tee. Brooke's twin sister, Angelia wore a blue skirt also with a tee that had the opposite pattern for the color scheme. She was identical to Brooke excluding her secondary hair color was dark magenta.<p>

"I showed weakness, making small talk with her." Olayinkah said to Brooke. She then reached in her bag and pulled out the silverish object she had been hiding earlier; it was a small syringe. "It was one of the rare moments where she didn't have any of her cousins, the Ishtar's around to protect her. I should have just stuck this in her neck when I had the chance!"

The five waited or a couple minutes before a dark corner of the room glowed a dark gold color and a tall, thin, dark skinned woman appeared in the gold mist. She was dressed in a long black Egyptian dress and her body was decorated with gold jewellery; including gems and some golden dust in her rump length black hair. She opened her brown, reddish tinted eyes and looked at the group around her as they gazed down at their feet like ashamed children.  
>"You've been given one simple task, my children." She said. "Olayinkah...You had the most opportune of moments and you passed it by to speak."<p>

"I'm sorry Nephthys. It won't happen again." Olayinkah said, keeping her head down.

"I created all five of you to destroy the Utopian mother before it's too late and she conceives." Nephthys, the Egyptian Goddess of Darkness stated. "I know that time is neigh and I know that all five of you can sense it too. The Utopian mother has found the one who shall father her child, and if she finds that out, our chances of success are going to decrease."

"We understand, Nephthys." Barbed Coil said, in sync.

"Understand this, my children...Olayinkah." Nephthys walked over to her and pushed the girls' hair over her ear, gripping the back of her neck with one hand and placing their foreheads together. "The Utopian Mother...must not...live...to conceive her child..."

Olayinkah closed her eyes.  
>"Yes mother..."<p> 


	14. Rematch

Chapter 14  
>Rematch<p>

"So Vera, what do you think we should do about being number two in the ranks?" Falicity asked, bringing her last piece of French toast to her mouth.

Vera poked at her poached eggs with her fork.  
>"I guess, the best thing we can do is to wait and see what happens if we end up dueling Barbed Coil in the final duel." She answered. "Just because they're outranking us doesn't mean they can take our position as champions."<p>

"But Vera, if we lose..."

"We won't, Fal." Vera reassured. "You guys haven't lost in the last 3 years with my help."

"You sure are confident, Vera." Yugi stated, cutting into his Salisbury steak.

"I have to be." Vera said with a small smile.

"Vera trusts in her cards more than all of us, and she's looking forward to pitting them against your cards, Yugi." Falicity said with a sweet smile.

Vera blushed and confirmed her statement with a small blush.  
>"That's a big if though Fal."<p>

Just then, Brooke walked up to their table with a tray of glasses.  
>"Excuse me." She said, putting a glass of water in front of Vera first. "Your other waitress had to go, so I'll be taking over."<p>

Falicity looked up at Brooke, knowing she was a member of Barbed Coil and then looked around at the empty plates around the table.  
>"We'll just need the check." She said when Brooke put down her soda for her.<p>

"Sure." Was all Brooke said before putting the now empty tray under her arm and walking off. She rounded the corner and met Olayinkah.

"Well?"

"It's in her water...It'll start working within the hour."

"You're positive it was _her_ drink?"

"Yes, it was easy...She was the only one who ordered water."

"Good."

"Fal?" Vera got Falicity's attention as she stared off in the direction Brooke took off.

"Yeah Vera?" Falicity replied.

"What's up?" Vera asked, sipping at the water. "You seem so distracted right now?"

"Well then..." Joey stated, almost slamming his now empty glass to the table, causing Vera to flinch a little. "Whatdaya say we give Fal something to focus on, Vera?"

"You sure are eager for the rematch...However, I guarantee you that your result won't be any different, Joey." Vera replied, sipping her water again. "Banshee's rock!"

"Nah, I bet they'll get rocked this time!" Joey said.

Falicity took out her cell phone and texted Hunter, telling her to come and watch.  
>Vera finished the glass of water and stared Joey down from across the small, rectangular table.<br>"Alright...Let me pay the bill and we'll get down to this rematch. I'll meet you guys outside."

Vera took her bank card back before clutching her head and blinking her vision back.  
>The waitress asked if Vera was okay and she replied with a smile before walking towards the door. She blinked at the sudden light from outside.<br>Falicity looked back and saw Vera struggling with the light more than she usually did.  
>"Vera?"<p>

Vera blinked more to adjust her eyes faster.  
>"I'm fine Fal." She shouted ahead before shaking her head clear. She then jogged up to the court yard. "Okay Joey...You ready to try again?" She asked with a smirk, readying her duel disk.<p>

"I was born ready, Vera." Joey replied, repeating the action.

"Let's duel."

"Yes. Let's." Joey drew his first card. "I'll go first this time!"

"Still, such a gentleman." Vera said.

Joey scoffed and examined his hand.  
><em>Hmm, not such a great hand, but you gotta start somewhere. Knowing Vera, her hand is bound to have at least one banshee for her to start with...Maybe if I can lure her into attacking one of my weaker monsters and spring Skull Dice on her, I could knock her down a couple life points, gain a head start and deplete her arsenal of screaming broads. That's it.<br>_"I'll place one card face down for starters, then I'll summon the Swordsman of Landstar in attack mode."

Vera raised her eyebrows as she stared at Joey's small, pink tuner monster. 500 ATK and 1200 DEF.  
><em>The Swordsman of Landstar? <em>She then shook her head. _What is it with this guy and starting out with the throw-away monsters? I'll have Frost Banshee put that little squeak toy on ice...But wait...What if that card he placed face down was a trap? _She gazed down at her own trap card, Dice Try. _Hmm...But what kind of trap? I'll play it safe.  
><em>"I'll start out with one card face down too, then I'll summon Frost Banshee, also in attack mode."  
>A new banshee appeared in black clothing and hair, blue skin and white eyes. 1900 ATK and 1700 DEF.<br>"Frost Banshee! Attack the Swordsman of Landstar!"

"Reveal Skull Dice!" Joey shouted over the Banshee's attack shriek.

Vera's eyes widened. "Her attack power will be deducted!"

"That's right, Vera!" Joey said before him and Vera watched the dice roll to 5. "Alright! 5! That means that your banshee's attack power will be cut in half!"

"She's still stronger than your Swordsman!" Vera stated before Joey's monster was destroyed regardless. As Joey's life points decreased to 3550, he looked over at Frost Banshee's life points and exclaimed in anger at the fact that it had merely decreased to 950, still more than 500.  
>"Plan a little better, Joey." Vera taunted. She then glanced down at her trap card. <em>If he has a Skull Dice, he probably has a Graceful Dice too...I better save this card...<em>

Vera drew Banshee's Rage from her deck. Her favorite trap card, all she needed now was Clawed Banshee and she could wrap the duel up the same way she did before.  
>"I'll summon Forest Banshee in attack mode and end my turn." She paused to see the perturbed face on Joey. "I'm not attacking because I figure I should give you a chance this time."<p>

"What are you scheming now, Vera?" Falicity asked to herself right as Hunter showed up with Zack and Kris. They were shortly followed by Tristan, Duke and Tea.

"Clearly Joey didn't learn his lesson last time." Duke said.  
>Falicity looked in his direction and blushed.<p>

Joey drew Gearfried the Iron Knight from his deck. It was a good card, but it wasn't strong enough to defeat Forest Banshee or Frost Banshee, both of them having 1700 and 1900 ATK prior to Gearfried's 1400. He then glanced over in his hand at Graceful Dice, the answer to his predicament. Even if Joey rolled a measly 2, Gearfried's power would be doubled to 2800.  
>"Okay Vera. I'll summon Gearfried the Iron Knight, then I'll give him a little power boost with Graceful Dice!"<p>

"Sorry Joey, but when I saw you had a Skull Dice, I knew you'd have a Graceful too, so I prepared myself. My trap card is Dice Try. It stops the effect of any cards that have to do with a dice."

"Seriously?" Joey exclaimed as his magic card disintegrated and Gearfried was left defenceless.

"Frost Banshee! Destroy Gearfried the Iron Knight!"  
>Gearfried was turned to ice and broke apart. Vera then ordered Forest Banshee to attack Joey's life points. Vines lashed Joey, reducing his life points to 1850.<p>

"Joey! Stop making rash, quick decisions and think about your moves!" Tristan shouted from the sidelines. "Smarten up or she'll cream you in four turns again!"

"How was I supposed to know she had a dice trumping card?" Joey snapped. He then looked down at his duel disk. _Awe man...I'm down to 1850 life points already and I haven't even touched her life points. I gotta turn this around...I'm not losing to her again.  
><em>He exclaimed. "Vera. Just go!"

"Sure thing." Vera said, drawing. "Okay Joey. Time for you to meet another one of my girls. I sacrifice Forest Banshee to summon Banshee Swordswoman!"  
>Forest Banshee disappeared and was replaced by a pale skinned, screaming woman dressed in silver armor with red hair and green eyes. She wielded a long silver sword. 2100 ATK and 1600 DEF.<br>"Then I'll place 2 cards face down and end my turn." Vera finished, her vision blurring for a couple minutes. She shook her head and watched Joey draw.

"I'll place 1 card face down and end my turn!" Joey said with a small smirk.

Vera failed to see the smirk and sighed. "How brain dead are you, Wheeler? You just opened yourself up to an attack that will lose this duel for you! I'll do you a favor and make it less painful by using Frost Banshee to finish you off!" Vera ordered the attack.

"AH HA! That's just what I wanted you to do, Vera!"

"Huh?"

"My face down card is the trap card, Magical Arm Shield."

Vera screamed at the card.  
>"You can take control of Frost Banshee!" She said in shock as Frost Banshee was moved to Joey's side of the field. "You're gonna sacrifice her, aren't you?"<p>

"Hey, you're catching on, Vera." Joey said as Frost Banshee disappeared. "I sacrifice Frost Banshee to summon Jinzo!"

Vera screamed in shock again at the large Cyborg monster.  
><em>He has a Jinzo? How did he get a Jinzo? <em>Her vision blurred again and her knees went weak for a moment. She again ignored it.

Tea looked at her and spoke up. "Guys...Vera looks...Sick..."

"Yeah, she's starting to feel sick at the fact that I'm about to end her winning streak!" Joey stated as both Vera's face down cards were zapped off the field.

_No! One of those cards was Banshee's Rage! _  
>Jinzo's Cyber Shock Waves destroyed Banshee Swordswoman, who went out with a shriek and Vera's life points dropped to 3200.<br>"Banshee Swordswoman!" Vera exclaimed before she clutched her throbbing head, only to realize that her arms were becoming more difficult to hold up.

"Vera! Are you okay?" Falicity asked.

"I'm fine!"  
>While Joey laughed at his luck change, Vera labeled it as a lucky move, but then prayed for her own. She drew and looked at her card. She laughed out loud at her luck. She drew a card called Red-Eyes Black Chick.<br>"I summon Red-Eyes Black Chick!" She shouted as a red egg appeared in front of her and then a small dragon that looked like a baby Red-Eyes Black Dragon hatched out. 800 ATK and 500 DEF. "Now, I'll sacrifice my chick and summon the Red-Eyes Black Dragon!"  
>Joey was dumbfounded when he saw his favorite monsters twin behind Vera. "Now I'll boost my dragons power... with..." Vera slowed down as her headache increased and her vision got worse and worse. "I discard...I...I..."<p>

Vera couldn't finish. Her legs shook uncontrollably, as if she was struggling to hold herself up. She dropped the cards in her hand and stumbled backwards.  
>Joey stopped laughing. "Hey...Vera, are you okay?"<p>

Vera clutched her head and her stomach.  
><em>I`m okay. I`m okay... I am okay...<br>_Her legs shook worse and her vision went completely black. "I am not okay. Please help!"

"What's going on?" Tea exclaimed in horror.

"Oh my God...I can't see!" Vera shouted. "My legs!"  
>Vera felt all of her muscles collapse as she hit the ground.<p>

Hunter was the first to Vera's side as she started to move spasmaticly on the ground.  
>"What do I do? What do I do?" Hunter asked.<p>

"I'll go get help!" Falicity took off to the hotel screaming for Marik, Ishizu and Odion.

"I'll call an ambulance!" Zack said, dialing 911 on his cell phone.  
>Kris just bit his nails.<p>

Yugi and his friends gathered around trying to help.

"What the hell?" Hunter snapped. "Get away!"

"Sorry dude." Yugi stated. "We just want to help. Vera is our friend."

Hunter eyed the group for a moment before she sighed.  
>"Any friend of Vera's is a potential friend of mine...but I don't think there's anything any of us can do." She said as Vera continued to shake in her arms.<p>

Marik came bolting out of the hotel and slid to Vera's on his knees, taking her from Hunter's grip.  
>"What happened?"<p>

"We don't know!" Tea answered.

"We were dueling and she just collapsed after a little episode she had." Joey continued.

Marik put his hand on Vera's forehead, her temperature was rising by the second and her muscles seemed to be hardening with every spasm.  
>Falicity lead Ishizu and Odion out of the hotel then. Marik had bolted ahead of them by a full two minutes.<br>"I'm not sure of the symptoms she's having. Has she ingested anything that could be suspicious?"

"I don't know." Hunter answered. "Zack, Kris and I haven't seen her all day."

"The water!" Falicity said. "A member of Barbed Coil gave her water!"

"The team Barbed Coil?" Ishizu repeated.

"We don't trust them." Falicity said.

"We should take precautions that she could have been poisoned, Marik." Ishizu said.

Marik nodded at her.  
>"Vera...I'm really, really sorry about this..." He said loudly before sticking two fingers into Vera's mouth and pressing into her throat until she vomited on herself.<p>

"Ewwwww!" Everyone exclaimed in disgust.

...

It wasn't long before an ambulance arrived to take Vera's unconscious body to the nearest hospital. Marik climbed into the ambulance before the back doors were closed and the paramedics drove off.  
>Ishizu closed her eyes in prayer for Vera.<p> 


	15. Vera's Nightmare

**Note from the Author:  
>2 little things to cover here:<strong>

**1.  
>If some of my characters seem a little SueishStuish (which i highly doubt they don't to some people), it's because they are STILL GOING THROUGH THEIR DEVELOPMENT. By the end of the story, most of my characters will be completely different people, more or less. Please give them a chance.  
>Please don't forget that this arc will revolve around Vera's struggle for the longest time...soon...VERY soon a canon character will be more than involved. I promise.<strong>

**2.  
>My co-writer, Leslie and I are in the discussion stage of another story based on Season 0 of YuGiOh. In this Season 0 fic, we will take ALL Ocs, chop them up into little pieces and put them back together like puzzles.<br>So be on the lookout and subscribe for that one. **

**Thanks.  
>On with Vera's adventures... <strong>

Chapter 15  
>Vera's Nightmare<span>

Vera laid in her hospital bed in a deep, drug induced sleep. A young nurse took her temperature.  
>"You poor thing." The young, brown haired nurse said. "You've been in and out of here so much for the past 2 years...I'm appalled how everyone can still put you through this and sleep at night..."<p>

...

Vera drug herself off the ground and gained her bearings. Blinking, she realized that the large building she was in front of were in fact the remains of the Northgate Hotel, looking like the building had been abandoned for ages. Confused, Vera ran inside the front door only to look around the lobby to find herself in the remains of a hospital lobby. It seemed like the place had been abandoned for even longer but despite the walls appearance-green with mold-the place smelled like a normal hospital.  
>Regardless, Vera hated hospitals with a passion no matter the state of the environment, so she turned around to leave again only to find the door suddenly locked. She rattled violently trying to open the door, only making a racket. The sound of heels clacking on the tiled floor attracted Vera's attention away from the door. She would have appreciated seeing Sammy at the time.<p>

"Hello?" Vera called to the quiet, prompting the clacking to stop and then start up again. Whoever was walking in Vera's direction was getting closer, very slowly. Soon, a tall woman (definitely not Sammy) rounded the corner. Vera couldn't identify her because the woman kept her head down, but her outfit was a get up that Vera was all too accustomed to seeing; a nurses dress. "Hello?" She called out to the nurse, who didn't respond. "Where am I? How did I get here?" Vera walked closer to the nurse, who kept her head down, letting brown waves of hair drape over her face. "Hello? Are you okay?"

The nurse still didn't utter a reply to Vera, instead she shot her head towards Vera as if to look at her and Vera screamed and ran in terror from the fact that said nurse had no face. It was only skin.

...

"Guys." Falicity called the Ishtars, Hunter, Kris and Zack over to Vera, whose face was turning pale and clammy from sweat. "Look at her...She doesn't look so good."

Ishizu place her hand on Vera's forehead, making her jump as if she'd received and electric shock.  
>Marik started to panic when Vera's breathing sped up and tears started to emerge from her closed eyes.<br>"Vera! Wake up!" Marik exclaimed. "Vera! Stay strong. None of it is real!"

...

Vera stopped in her tracks in the corridor. "Marik?" She called, hearing her voice echo. "Marik! Where are you?"

_Vera. _She heard his voice again, as if he was on the other side of the hospital, it was so faint. _None of this is real. You have to wake up._

"I have to wake up? What do you mean? Where am I?"  
>A flash of light blinded Vera and she found herself surrounded by blinding white hospital wall, her team and cousins, a nurse injecting something into the I.V. attached to her arm.<br>Vera's first glance at the brown haired nurse startled her. She then took a reliving sigh. "You have a face."

The nurse seemed confused. "Yes, Vera...I have a face." She took the injector out of the I.V. and disposed of the syringe. "I used an antidote to pull her out of the coma, but she'll need to stay the night so we can assure that she'll be fine. Her blood test still hasn't come back."

"Wait? How did I get here?" Vera suddenly clued in that she was dueling Joey just a moment ago to her. She looked around at the blinding white walls and tacky curtains, a typical hospital set up that she was sick of. "Where's Joey? Who won?"

"Vera." Falicity said. "It was a close game, but you had to end it because you just...lost it."

"What do you mean 'lost it'?" Vera asked.

"You quite literally lost it." Kris stated. "You dropped your cards, you legs fell underneath you, you even started to seize."

"I had a seizure?"

"It was so scary." Falicity said, looking like she was about to cry.

"But you scared us even worse just now." Hunter spoke up, popping up at Vera's side. "What kind of nightmare were you having?"

"I don't know..." Vera said slowly. She honestly wasn't sure what the faceless nurse was all about. "Just something silly that freaked me out at the time."

...

Around 10 at night, everyone had gone back to the hotel and Vera laid alone in her room, trying to adjust to the immensely uncomfortable bed. Once she managed to close her eyes, the sound of the door opening snagged her attention.  
>Falicity peeked through the door. "Vera? You awake?"<p>

"Of course." Vera answered, happy to see a friendly face. She was all too vulnerable at the moment. "Come on in, Fal."

Falicity pulled up a chair beside the bed. "How are you?"

"How I usually feel while I'm in a hospital by myself." Vera answered, making Falicity smile. "Like a deer with four busted legs."

"I'm so happy you're okay. I prayed to God harder than I ever have...when...you were put into the ambulance." Falicity knew taking up this topic was a risky move. She and Vera were too completely different religions.  
>Both Falicity's parents were Catholic and Vera was raised by an Atheist father and an Egyptian-based Pagan mother. How Vera and her were even such good friends at all surprised Falicity at times.<p>

Vera sighed.  
>"Fal...Our mutual agreement was that if you respected my beliefs, I'd respect yours...But..."<p>

"Go on, Vera..." Falicity said.

"When it comes to..._your_ God...Im thinking either...No offense, but either he's not up there...or he hates my guts." Vera managed to shake out without any tears, but they soon flew down her cheeks. "It must be my ancestry...Man he can hold a grudge."

Falicity pulled her chair closer and put her hands on both Vera's shoulders.  
>"Vera. I know you don't believe...but hear me out. My God <em>is<em> up there, and he does love and care about you. He loves and cares about Marik, Ishizu, Odion and your parents. No matter what your ancestry is. And I love you no matter your belief."

Vera cracked a small smile and hugged Falicity.

...

"I'm not sure, Aunt Viv..." Ishizu said on the phone with Vivian. "I felt something dark on Vera...something very dark..."

_...Maybe I should come down there. _Vivian's voice said in the other side of the phone. _I'm really worried about Vera. After what you said happened..._

"No, Aunt Viv. Vera is fine. You know she bounces back." Ishizu reassured.

_Yes. Since the first few years, she has become more elastic, hasn't she?_

"Yes."

Vivian paused.  
><em>Do me a favor and tell me what happened to Vera as soon as her blood test comes back. <em>

"Of course, Aunt Viv." Ishizu said.

_I must go. _Vivian's voice echoed her deep concern for Vera.

...

Vivian hung up the phone with a shaky hand.  
>"Vera...Nephthys has finally managed to open the gates to the Netherworlds and release the Gods..."<p>

...


	16. The Executioness

**Note from the Author:  
>This is a chapter where the story may start to move a little quickly... Look on the bright side...It's not gonna be slow anymore. And for those who don't like the scene switching...I'm sorry, it's how I write. Habits die hard.<br>On with the story.**

Chapter 16  
>The Executioness<p>

Vera woke herself from another odd nightmare. This one was of her running down a hallway and the door at the end zooming away from her and making that hall longer each time she reached for the knob.  
>Glancing over at the alarm clock, her head ached at the site of 6:15 am. She shook her head and threw her feet to the floor, walking over to her balcony and sliding the door open. Looking back over her shoulder, she saw that the partner that Valona had brought to her had left in the middle of the night somewhere. Nothing that was new to Vera.<p>

She took in the hot Nevada night air with extreme pleasure. With every breath, she felt lighter. Since Vera got back to the tournament from the hospital, she'd been having odd nightmares involving horribly disfigured versions of her friends and family and insidious monsters taking place in what seemed to her like the same place; either a room looking like the floor, roof and walls were made from metal grates or outdoors in a apocalyptic looking environment; like a forest made of barbed wire trees.  
>Vera had no idea what these nightmares meant; all she knew was that they were getting worse and worse every night.<p>

...

Failing to fall back asleep, Vera read a book for the rest of the morning until there was a knock at her door once the sun was up. It was 10:30 am, but Vera's duel wasn't until noon and as far as Vera knew, all her friends-old and new-had plans that morning.  
>Still in her jammies, Vera walked towards the door and leaned into it. " Marik, is that you?"<br>No answer. Vera opened the door to see a tall woman under a black cloak. A woman with black wavy hair that cascaded down her shoulders; the tips were blue, white eyes and pale skin. Under her long gothic dress' nylon sleeves, her cultic tattoos festooning her arms peeked out while they creeped up her neck.  
>Behind her where two men just as tall completely hidden under closed cloaks.<br>"Remember me, darling?" The woman purred.

Before Vera could scream for Marik or any other form of help, the two men had tackled her to the floor and held a wet cloth to her mouth and nose, silencing what screams she could force out in her frozen terror. It wasn't long before Vera felt light headed.  
>Her vision faded.<p>

...

Marik felt a cold chill run down his spine while he was at a small cafe with Yugi, Bakura, Summer and Tea.  
>"Does anyone else feel that?" He asked.<p>

"Feel what, Marik?" Yugi asked.

"That...cold chill...Like something's wrong." Marik clarified.

"A cold chill?" Tea repeated curiously.

"Maybe I'm just feeling a cold draft." Marik shrugged before another chill was caused by Vera's blood curdling screams echoing in the back of his head followed by a weeping plea:  
><em>Marik?...Marik! Please help me! Marik! Help me, please! Marik!<br>_"It's Vera!" He cried, dashing out the door.  
>Before anyone could react, Marik hailing a taxi and dialing Vera's number on his cell phone. "Northgate Hotel as fast as you can!" He ordered the driver, slamming the car door behind him.<p>

"Marik!" Summer called, running out onto the sidewalk while the taxi sped off. "This looks bad..."

...

The tab was $35.75, but Marik tossed %50.00 through the driver's window in his panic while running off towards the hotel lobby without even closing the cab door. "Keep the change!"  
>On his way through the lobby, he ran into Ishizu. "ISHIZU!"<p>

His sister spun around from talking to Merida, a teller at the lobby desks, in shock to see her brother in such a paniced state. "Marik! What is wrong, brother?!"

"Vera! Have you seen Vera lately?!"

"No, Marik. Not since last night. Why?"

"I can't explain it, Ishizu, but I have a horrible feeling that she is in danger!"

"Come on!" Ishizu told Marik before the two of them dashed for the elevator. She understood his feeling all too well, she felt it too. Marik was assigned as Vera's _Soul Guardian, _meaning they were to be (from lack of better terms) spiritually connected until Vera was re-united with her Soul Mate, whoever he was to be. But every once in a while, Ishizu and even Odion at times would get the feeling that Vera was in peril when she was.

Once the two got to the 7th floor and to Vera's door, Room #7104, Marik pounded on the door and called for Vera. When there was no answer, he tore his pocket's apart for his copy of her key card.  
>He opened the door to find Vera's room in a hot-mess. The bed was torn up, the mattress was blocking the doorway to the balcony, all the contents of Vera's closet and suitcases were scattered all over the floor and all the contents of her pantry in the bathroom were also scattered.<br>"Whoever took her must have been looking for something." Ishizu observed. "But who and what?...Marik?"  
>She glanced over to Marik, who was picking up Vera's cell phone; which was kicked under the quazenza of the small kitchen in the corner when Vera attempted to use it, Marik was sure.<p>

Ishizu repeated her plea for Marik to answer her when Marik flipped the phone open to see _1 missed call _and select it to see it was his own call. Vera was gone before he tried to contact her. Looking at the picture of the two happy cousins on the screen that read in Calibri font _MARIK _across the bottom boarder, Marik started to tear up in rage and slammed his fist against the wall.  
>"I could have been here! I <em>should <em>have been here!"

Ishizu left her brother to pull himself together and ran for the elevator again. Almost tripping over her Egyptian cotton dress, she dashed out into the lobby again and to Merida.  
>The tall, sporty, blonde woman looked at Ishizu in concern.<br>"Is everything okay?"

"No." Ishizu answered immediately. "Vera is gone and her room has been ransacked! I need to see your security tapes from this morning!"

"They are supposed to be confidential without a warrant, but this is about the balance of the world, isn't it?" Merida stated. Making sure nobody of importance saw, she let Ishizu into the back room of the desks and the two flickered through the tapes of all the hallways from when Vera was last seen-1:15am that morning-to then.  
>"Ishizu!" Merida finally called, prompting Ishizu to turn to her screen. "Look!" She pressed play at the playback of what happened in the West fire escape.<p>

...

Vera awoke in the dark. She couldn't move her hands from behind her back, she could only try and hear the familiar sound of ropes being pulled. Once her eyes adjusted to her dark surroundings, Vera looked around at the dark, small in size room she was in that was empty aside from her and a few crates marked _Toxic. _  
>In shock, she almost cried out only to discover she had been gagged also while she was unconscious. Remembering what she saw before she passed out, Vera was brought to tears. The woman who ambushed her was a dangerous, sadistic woman known only as <em>The Executioness <em>who had been hunting Vera and her cousins and friends relentlessly since the first Northgate Tournament began. Vera managed to get herself off the floor with her elbows and sit against the wall on her bottom, because that's all she felt she could do. Even if she didn't have the cloth wrapped around her mouth, she wouldn't want to cry out for help for fear that anyone-especially Executioness-was on the other side of the single door across from her.

...

Rage grew in Marik's stomach as he watched on the screen the two men carry Vera's limp, unconscious body down the fire escape and out of site, but Executioness turned to look at the camera before smiling at it before it shut off, leaving static.  
>Ishizu and Odion stood behind the seated Marik in shock.<br>"Stevhani... I should have known it was her." Ishizu said. "She is relentless, but she's never kidnapped Vera like this before."

Marik thought for a while. "She's worried..."

"What do you mean, Marik?" Merida asked.

"I recall Valona saying that Vera would find her soul mate nearby this year. The prophecy is nigh, and if I were an occultist, I'd be starting to panic." Marik explained. "Before, Stevhani's strikes at Vera were rash and quick."

"Yes, Marik." Odion stated. "She must be worried...or she might have learned. Think about it. This time, she struck at Vera when she unguarded."

"Well this can't get any worse can it?" Marik asked.

Just then, Hunter came bursting in with everyone else (excluding Joey, who was picking his sister up at the airport) behind her like an army. "WHAT HAPPENED?! I DEMAND TO KNOW!" She shrieked.

"Hunter, jeez dude." Tristan said. "Calm down."

"Marik, what was your taking off in a panic all about?!" Tea exclaimed.

Marik took the shaking Hunter by the shoulders. "Hunter, I'll tell you what's going on if you promise not to freak out."

"What are you talking out?" Zack spoke up. "This is the queen of freak outs you're talking to...You should know, you used to date her."

Hunter shot her brother a dirty look before putting her hands over top Marik's. "I promise...I won't freak out."

Marik took a deep breath in a looked at the supporting looks from his siblings. "Stevhani is back and she took Vera. We have no idea where she is."

"WHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAT?!" Hunter screamed before Marik slapped his hand over her mouth.

"Shhhh! Hunter please!" Marik pleaded.

Falicity covered her heart. "That terrible, terrible woman took Vera?!" She started to shed tears, prompting a nearby Duke to pat her on the shoulder.

"Awe, Fal. I hate to see a girl cry." Duke said, giving her his shoulder to weep on. This site hit Bakura hard in the chest for a reason he didn't know.

"Who's this Stevhani, Marik?" Yugi asked.

"Her name is Stevhani Hotchner, but she's otherwise known as the Executioness for reasons you could easily assume." Marik replied.

"So Vera's in big trouble?" Tea said.

"Bigger trouble then you could imagine." Ishizu said. "This woman is relentless. We don't know where she came from, but ever since Vera was named the mother of Utopia, she has been there, trying to do away with Vera. Some ways more inhumane than others."

"Inhumane?" Yugi repeated. "What do you mean?"

Marik paused, his eyes flickered with a painful memory. "Have you ever wondered why Vera really wears wrist bands and long gloves?" He asked. Everyone stayed silent and he sighed heavily. "2 years ago, one of the first times-"

"Marik...You don't have to tell this story..." Ishizu said.

"No, they have to know." Marik objected before continuing. "One of the first times Stevhani kidnapped Vera, she brought her to an old mine shaft in the Grand Canyon, it took us forever to find her. She'd strung Vera up to the roof of the shaft by her wrists with barbed wire and left her there to bleed out. Vera needed several emergency tetanus shots and her wrists are severely scarred to this day and she's very sensitive about it."

"So that's why..." Falicity said. "I always assumed she had a change of fashion ideology... That's so terrible." She was hoping that Vera was okay when Serenity was heard in the lobby.

"Marik! Ishizu! Odion! Anyone!" Serenity cried from the lobby promoting everyone to pile out of the tiny office.

"Serenity?!" Ishizu asked, surprised to see her. "What's wrong?"

"Well, when Joey picked me up from the airport, I wanted to go exploring and while we were looking around some shops, Joey saw these two shady guys packing something over their shoulders, so we followed them." Joey's younger sister said in a state of shock and panic. "They threw her in the river! They threw her in the river and tried to drown her!"  
>Joey appeared in the doorway, dripping wet and holding an unconscious-but breathing-Vera; also dripping wet.<p> 


	17. Mirror Reckoning

Chapter 17  
>Mirror Reckoning<p>

Vera awoke in her room. She wondered if the whole thing was a dream until she felt a horrible pain in the back of her head and felt the bump where she had been hit several times.  
>A knock on the door made her jump, but Falicity's voice calmed her down. "Vera? Are you awake?"<p>

"Yeah. C'mon in if it's open." Vera replied loudly.

Falicity opened the door and was almost in tears as she looked at Vera.  
>"Thank God!" She said with a sigh of relief. "I was so scared when I found out you were thrown into the river!"<p>

These words shocked Vera. "I was what? Fal...I can't swim! How?"

"That's why I was scared!" Falicity said. "I'm so glad Joey was able to save you!"

"Joey?" Vera repeated.

Falicity gave her a questioning look. "You didn't know?"

"I remember darkness, more darkness and then sinking into cold water. I thought, no, I knew I was a goner, Fal." Vera said. "...Joey."

Falicity gave her friend a quick hug. "I'm glad you're okay."

Vera paused, patting her friends back. "Do you know where Joey is? I want to say thank you."

"He should be up in his room, I'll go see if I can find him." Falicity replied.

"Take your time." Vera said before Fal closed the door behind her.  
>All that was crossing Vera's mind was why someone like Joey would risk his own life and safety to save her. She personally thought Joey was annoyed with her due to their duel. Her on the other hand, she thought Joey was cute, but in a high school crush kind of fashion and in view of her circumstances, she could not afford to mix anyone in with her unless he happened to be her soul mate. She could not destroy another life.<br>Vera gave her head a hard shake. She didn't want to recall that horrible memory. She laid back down and closed her eyes again for a few minutes.

...

After about 15 minutes, another knock at Vera's door jolted her awake. "Come in!" She called.

Joey walked into the room before closing the door and half smiling at her.  
>"How are you feeling, Vera?" He asked. His voice sounded different for some reason.<p>

"Still trying to filter the water out of my lungs, but I'm fine." She answered. "How about you?"

"Yeah." Joey said before coughing and clearing his throat. "I've never been better."

Vera was horror-struck.  
>"Oh no. You caught a cold, didn't you?"<p>

"No. No. I'm-" Joey started before sneezing. "I'm fine." He finished, all the energy out of his voice.

"Joey..." Vera sighed. Her face said: 'You should have just let me drown'.

"Vera." Joey said. "It's just a little cold. I'd risk one over again if it meant keeping you safe."

"Really?" Vera hid her blush. "Wait? What were you doing all the way down there at the river, Joey? It's one heck of a walk from here or the city for that matter."

"Well, I went to the airport to pick up my sister. She automatically wanted to hit the shops and dragged me along. While we were at the Park Plaza, we saw some shady looking guys carrying what looked like a person. We followed them and sure enough."

Vera shuttered. "The person was me?"  
>Joey nodded and Vera continued. "Dark, cold water and more dark...That's all I remember besides a soft voice...A very soft voice."<p>

"That was my sister, Serenity." Joey said. "She's the one who called for help. Ambulances were taking too long, so we just climbed up to the Grand Canyon and got a cab from those helicopter tours."

"How did I get-"

"You're a lot lighter than you look, Vera...No offense." Joey said.

"You...You carried me all the way up there?"

"You bet." Joey said blushing.

Vera tilted her head. "Joey...Why are you blushing?"

Joey cleared his throat. "I don't know who to tell you this, Vera."

Vera was getting nervous. "What? What happened?"  
>Joey coughed before taking a deep breath and mumbling. "Sorry, I didn't get that...Tell me, please." Vera pleaded.<p>

Joey took another deep breath and shifted awkwardly. "You see, Vera...You were under water for a long time...You'd taken in a lot of water...While Serenity was gone...I kinda...Gave you mouth-to-mouth."

Vera was speechless, but she had to force something out.  
>"Oh...Well...I...I don't know what to say, Joey...But...Thank you. I don't know very many people who would catch a cold for me."<p>

"I'm sure I'm not the only one who wants to keep you around." Joey protested.

"Yes. People want me...but for all the wrong reasons to me." Vera turned away to hide her tears. "People only care about me if they're family...excluding Sammy of course...or if they only care about my spiritual worth." She paused. "No Vera? World will go boom."

"Vera...That's not the only reason people want to keep you around." Joey stated.

"Yes it is." Vera said. She couldn't hold back the tears any longer.

Joey shook his head. He didn't understand Vera, or her pain, but he never could stand to see a girl cry.  
>"Vera...What's there to weep about? Are you actually a banshee or something?"<br>She didn't answer. "What was a joke, Vera." He reassured. "A joke? Go ha-ha?"

Vera didn't ignore him, she didn't even hear him. She was locked on to the mirror mentally.  
>She looked in terror as the reflection distorted the room into the same environment in her nightmares. Walls rotting into nothing my metal grates around.<br>Vera's own reflection even shifted, to a terrified looking version of her with much longer hair and even darker skin, wearing a tattered dress that made her look like an ancient Egyptian slave. The slave Vera put her hand on what was the other side of the mirror and her hand print became bloody and as her hand came off the glass, the blood trickled down.

"Vera!" Joey's voice and touch jolted Vera out of her state. She looked in between Joey and the now normal mirror. "Vera. Are you okay?"

"Yeah." She lied. "Why?"

"Because you were looking at that mirror like a ghost was in it." Joey told her.

Vera shook her head.  
>"Just...I...Never mind." She looked at Joey for a while. She couldn't name why, but when Joey was around, she started to feel warm and safe.<p>

Marik cleared his throat from in the doorway before closing the door behind him. Vera addressed him before thanking Joey again and giving him and hug followed by a small kiss on the cheek before leaving with Marik.

...

"From all the times I've been the one to save your life, never once have I ever gotten a kiss." Marik said as he and Vera walked down the hall in the opposite direction as Joey.

"Marik...I can't kiss you...You're my cousin." Vera replied.

"You'd probably want to be a redneck Egyptian that a Sammy. Going around and kissing anyone who happens to be a boy."

"Be nice to Sammy." Vera said to Marik, giving a nervous laugh.  
>She wanted to tell Marik about what she saw in the mirror, but she held it back for reasons she didn't even know.<p> 


	18. Important Note for The Readers

To my readers.

As of May 30th, my laptop cannot access Internet explorer, therefor I am borrowing a tablet to do all my Internet needs such as checking email, tending to my deviantart account and answering messages/replying to reviews here on ff.

I cannot post chapters on this tablet because all my chapter documents are on my laptop and will have to be transferred to my new one, once I get a chance to get one. However, at the rate things are going here, I won't be able to get a new laptop til August when the school sales are going on. But I promise, I will try t get a hold of one sooner.

Until I find a new laptop, new chapters for "5Ds: Rise of the Nether Signer", "Bullet Witch: Loves Light and Hates Darkness", "Dead Terra: Apocalypse" and other active stories will be have to be put on hold.  
>Ill update this message as soon as I know when I'll be getting a new laptop.<p>

Until then, please hold tight, ill get to work on new chapters as soon as I can.

Love from  
>Bae. Aka. AnarchyGunRage.<p> 


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